Mafia Legacy
by Serenity Angel14
Summary: You can't escape your past. No matter how much you wish you could. At 12 Serena's mother told her the truth about why they had to remain hidden. At 18 he came for her with painful and bloody consequences. Now, Serena's only chance to be free is to take down the man who wants the one thing from her that she will never give. But that means trusting someone she's never even met.
1. Prologue

**Summary: At the age of 12, Serena's mother told her the truth about why they had to remain hidden. At the age of 18 he came for her with painful and bloody consequences. Now, Serena's only chance to be free is to take down the man who wants the one thing from her that she will never give. But that means trusting someone she has never met. But Serena has no choice, because when family betrays you, sometimes a dangerous stranger with the same goal is the only one you can risk trusting.**

Author's Chapter Notes:

**I began writing this one after I broke my ankle and spent the 3 months on crouches as I was writer's blocked on A Wolf's Cry.**

**I was almost finished the first draft of chapter 1 when my computer decided it needed a trip to the computer doctor.**

**By the time I got my computer back, I was over my writer's block, so I had to put Mafia Legacy aside for a little while.**

**But now A Wolf's Cry is finished, I have half a chapter writen for Heart's Sight - so expect Chapter 1 to be post someone time the next few months, no I have not given up on it. Not yet anyway - but Mafia Legacy is the one my fingers want to write.**

**Chapter 1 will be posted by the end of January. I hope.**

**I might not be good at making deadlines, but I always come through.**

**Eventually. I do not start something I do not intend to finish.**

**Have a great 2015 everyone! And be safe these holidays.**

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><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

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><p>There was nothing, nothing but yet at the same time there was so much. Too much. All she could see was darkness which not one speck of light penetrated, even though the intense head did. There was so much pain but despite her situation there was no fear for herself. No fear of anything any more, not now, not after what her eyes had witness in the previous twenty minutes.<p>

Serena could see not see but she could _hear_ it all, the deafening roaring that filled her ears. It was so loud that Serena couldn't even hear her own muffled screams over it; Serena never knew fire could be so deafening.

It was so hot, even as far back as she was, but all she wanted was to run towards it, even as the two sets of strong thick arms pulled her away. She was blindfolded, gagged and had her wrists bound together in front of her but still it took the two beefy men to drag her back.

Serena didn't care that the were the men worked for the one man she'd feared ever since the age of twelve when her mother had told her the truth about what she had spent the last ten years hiding them both from.

Serena didn't care that they were the ruthless killers from her nightmares. All that mattered was getting back into the house even though she knew that it was already too late. Too too late.

Too late because the habitants of the two story suburban home, that they had just brought and moved into, had been dead before the gasoline fuelled fire had been lit. Serena knew that because she had watched them die, a bullet to the head for each of them.

They had been her dear dear friends. No, they had been more than that. They had been her family.

Family that had been executed in cold blood by her own father.

Her father who had finally found her.

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><p>Chapter End Notes:<p>

**Mafia Legacy Chapter 1, coming soon to a computer screen near you!**


	2. Chapter 1 - The Plan: Stage 1

Author's Chapter Notes:

**Here it is, Chapter 1 of my new Fanfic.**

**Please Note: I am Australian and have no idea about US organised crime, so please excuse little incorrect facts and so on.**

**Enjoy!**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1 – The Plan: Stage 1<strong>

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><p>Huff. Huff.<p>

One.

Huff. Huff.

Two.

Huff. Huff.

One.

Huff. Huff.

Two.

Serena was almost there. Just a little further. She could make it. She had made it this far and in record time too.

Huff. Huff.

One.

Huff. Huff.

Two.

Just a couple of metres more. Her body was tiring, her lungs were burning, her legs were protesting as she continued to push herself relentlessly. She could make it. She was going to make it. She wasn't going to stop or trip up now, not when she was so close.

Five metres.

Huff. Huff.

Three metres.

Huff. Huff.

One . . .

Yes! She'd done it! Serena had finally beaten her personal best!

Serena couldn't help but grin triumphantly at her accomplishment. She'd done it. She'd shaved a full two minutes off her previous personal best.

Coming to a gradual halt, Serena rested her hands of her knees and lowered her head as she forced herself to draw in long deep breaths in an effort to give her body the oxygen it needed. Her heart was pounding in her chest, her entire body felt too hot regardless of the layer of sweat that covered her in attempt to cool itself down.

Serena had never been much of a runner until recently. Oh, there had been the daily mad dash to school to beat the morning bell, but most days regardless of how fast she ran she'd still gotten detention for being late to school.

In her early teenage years Serena had loved her sleep a little too much and getting up in the mornings had been a major drag, but on the bright side it had kept her slim. Even now, as an adult Serena still loved her junk food, pizza, chocolate and ice cream in its many forms in particular, but in her teenage years Serena hadn't possessed the self-restraint to go without her favourite foods for anywhere near as long.

But over a year ago now, everything had changed and not for the better. Her life had been turned upside down when everything her mother had warned her about for most of her teenage years had come to pass.

Now running wasn't a desperate attempt to avoid detention in school; it was a necessity. More than that, it was crucial to her very survival. Running was her only escape, her only peace. It was the only time she felt any kind of freedom. It was the one time that she could almost forget just how wrong her life had become.

Even her dreams gave her no peace. Her dreams always ended the same no matter how they began, in blood and fire. Her dreams always turned into nightmares that woke her up in the middle of the night covered in sweat and shaking – and not from the cold either.

Serena had spent the first half of her life believing that she was just an ordinary girl of an ordinary one parent family. It had just been her and her mother. As it had always been.

Or so Serena had believed until the day after her twelfth birthday when her mother had finally told her everything, had finally explained why she was so overprotective and at times downright paranoid.

Why her mother had always worked for cash and moved them to another town every six months until Serena had turned twelve.

The day after her twelfth birthday had been the day that her life had changed forever and not for the better. In truth, Serena would have been so much happier not knowing, but her mother had had no choice but to let her in on the terrible secret that had kept them on the run.

At least Serena had come to realise that her mother hadn't been paranoid. How could it paranoia when the woman had ended up being right about everything?

At least her mother had died before all her nightmares had come true for her daughter.

A bottle of water appeared in her line of vision, and everything came crashing back, squashing her brief moment of joy and accomplishment flat.

Instead of taking the offered water, or even acknowledging it. Serena straightened, turned her back to the man offering her the bottled water and reached for her own that was attached to her belt.

Running had become more to Serena than a way to escape, it was the only thing in her life that she looked forward too, the only thing she had left in her life that was truly her own. And because running had become so important to her, Serena had devoted a lot of time and money to making it as comfortable and hassle free as possible.

Serena had brought almost everything that could be used to make the activity as leisurely as possible. From her numerous – not to mention expensive – running outfits and jogging shoes to her . . well, Serena guessed she would have to call it her utility belt. On the army green clip belt – it was an actual army belt that she had ordered online from a weapons and hunting store – Serena had her small pink drink bottle that looked like a half-sized pink canteen, two bulky pouches containing energy bars, sunscreen, a small first aid pouch that included an ace bandage in case of injury and a portable ice pack – the kind that became cold when you broke the cylinders inside.

Serena had spared no expense. After all, it was her father's money and Serena selfishly delighted in spending every cent she possibly could as she firmly believed that the money would do better in the hands of the honest store and business owners than in her father's cruel disreputable hands.

The man behind her, dressed in his usual black suit with a tasteful blue tie, really expensive Italian shoes and dark spy sunglasses – who Serena knew for certain carried a weapon hidden beneath his jacket – gave no reaction at her indifference.

Every day Serena did her run. Every day he and three others just like him were there watching her. Every day one of them offered her a bottle of water when she finished and every day Serena turned her back to them.

And like every other day of her life that had become downright miserable, Serena finished the last of her water before returning the pink canteen to her belt and without looking at any of the men who had their eyes fixed on her, Serena walked her way out of the park and across the street to the small coffee shop.

Serena loved that little chill she got when she entered the cool air-conditioned coffee shop, the chilled air caressed her heated sweat-covered skin as the smell of coffee and baked goods filled her nose.

This coffee shop was the kind that women tended to frequent more than men. That was the thing about coffee shops today. There were those that catered to everyone – from teenagers to middle class on their way to work to the bosses that ran the business and companies – and then there were those that catered to a specific clientele. Some catered for the wealthy, some catered to the young cool kids – aka the "hottest hangout" – some catered to the immediate area's needs and some catered to one of the sexes.

Such as the one Serena now stood inside of. Luna's Coffee Shopcatered specifically to women mainly because of the gym next door that catered mostly to women with their palates classes and more feminine equipment. It wasn't like men weren't welcome in either business; it was more that women were ninety percent of their business and the owners of both businesses were smart enough to make the atmosphere compatible.

In other words, both the gym and the coffee shop were designed to make women feel welcome and comfortable while making straight men question their sexuality just for stepping through the door.

It was why Serena used this coffee shop instead of any of the other three in the immediate area.

Not since Serena had first stepped in here had any of her _"bodyguards"_ dared to step inside. Instead they watched her through the window which wasn't that hard as the two exterior walls of the shop were tinted glass from floor to ceiling.

And even though most days her routine was exactly the same, Serena hardly ever made the same purchase twice in one week. What she ordered depended purely on her mood.

Today, Serena wasn't in the mood for coffee. No, today she wanted to celebrate a little for breaking her record; it was a task that had taken her a whole month.

Serena had pushed herself every day, and it had finally happened. She was finally where she needed to be; a full month later Serena had finally broken her record.

It was a small victory, but it was _her_ victory. Something in her life that her father couldn't take away from her.

At the thought Serena's sweet tooth perked up its head, demanding something sweet and chocolatey along with something sweet and chocolatey.

Serena smiled in anticipation, her taste buds already watering as she scoured the goodies in the glass bakery display cases, trying to decide between a chocolate chocolate chip muffin or a slice of chocolate mud cake topped with thick gooey sour cream icing, a dollop of fresh cream and a bright red glazed cherry.

Which would go bettered with her iced chocolate with extra cream? It was a wonderful mix of milk chilled with small square hollow ice cubes and enough chocolate syrup to give an entire bus load of kindergartners a sugar rush that would put the caregivers flat on their faces in sheer exhaustion before the end of the day. If that wasn't enough, it was topped with a mountain of whipped cream that was coated with a layer of chocolate powder.

The combination was a chocoholics wet dream. A worthy prize for her accomplishment.

The accomplishment that meant it was time. She was ready – she could run long and fast enough to make it.

The last thing she needed had finally fallen into place which meant that she was ready to finally put her plan into action. She had one chance, if she blew it then she would pay dearly, but if she succeeded then she would finally have a way out of her living nightmare.

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><p>As always, three of her four <em>"bodyguards" <em>exited the black SUV first, only the one who was driving remained seated after pulling up at the front door of her father's ostentatious mansion. The three _"bodyguards"_ took their customary strategic positions between her passenger side door and the mansion's front entrance – one on either side of her passenger side door and the third on the top step that put him almost exactly half way between the SUV and the mansion's front door – before the one standing at the middle of the SUV door opened her door wide for her while the one one the other side extended a hand to help her out of the high vehicle.

But as always, Serena ignored the hand and stepped down by herself.

And as always, the two muscle bound gorillas followed half a step behind her as she walked up the eight wide white stone steps while the third moved swiftly to the front door and opened it, holding the door open for her.

Not one of the four took their eyes off of her the entire time.

Unlike traditional _"bodyguards"_ these ones watched her every move more than they watched the their surroundings for signs of danger.

These _"bodyguards" _had two duties. The first was too keep her safe and make sure nothing happened to her but their main purpose, their priority, was to assure that she did not escape during one of the rare times she was allowed outside the prison her father had created around her.

Other than her daily runs with a visit to the coffee shop, Serena was not allowed off the grounds without her father's permission. She was allowed one shopping trip per week and allowed to go see _her _doctor – chosen for her by her father of course, which meant that she was on her father's payroll – for whatever she wanted whenever she wanted but she was never allowed out of the house for anything, except her run, on two consecutive days.

On her shopping day, she could do as she wished; she could go see a movie or have an early dinner in a restaurant or both.

As long as she followed the rules. The rules that made her every bit a prisoner than if she were actually locked in a prison cell in her father's basement.

The rule that was her father's first and most crucial was that Serena was never allowed to leave the grounds "unescorted". She could go anywhere inside the walls that she pleased – except for areas her father deemed that she had no place being in such as his office, his bedroom and for reasons that Serena didn't want to know the basement – but if she ever tried to leave – escape – the grounds then she would be punished.

And when Serena was allowed to leave the grounds she was never to be out of sight of her _"bodyguards"_.

The second rule was that she may use her laptop and other wireless devices but Serena was absolutely forbidden to contact anyone. She could shop and surf the internet but she was not allowed to email or log onto Facebook, Twitter, etc. Her use was closely monitored so if she did try to call for help online then her captors would know.

And she would be punished.

Serena was sure there was a way to prevent anyone from knowing what she did when she was online but she was in no way tech-savy enough to do it.

From there the rules were basically all just repeats of the same basic principles_. _She was not allowed to try to escape, she was not to contact anyone via any means – phone, internet, fax or smoke signals – she must behave and respect her father – fat chance – and she was to always do as she was told – huh, as if.

On top of that, Serena was not allowed to have anything that could be deemed a "weapon" – as if that would stop her if she had the chance to get her hands on one – she was not allowed to talk to anyone when she was allowed out other than to conduct whatever transaction she was making – sales persons and so on – and under no circumstances was she to attempt to harm _any_ of the father's _"staff"_.

Serena was not a violent person, but she would, and did, not hesitate to defend herself against anyone who got _handsy_ with her, which had happened a few times since entering her father's _captivity_.

Her father's mansion was a very nicely gilded cage but it was a cage none-the-less; one Serena fully intended to escape.

"Serena, your father wants to see you."

At the sound of the familiar cold voice Serena froze. How she hated that oily used car salesman voice, but not half as much as she hated the man it belonged too. Her father's head lackey and undoubtedly the most dangerous man Serena had ever met. And not because he was especially skilled or big or intimidating, but because of what he lacked.

His name was Diamond – Serena had no clue if it was his first or last name or just a nickname – and he lacked everything that made up a _good man_. As far as Serena had seen, he had no decency, not one shred of humanity. He had no compassion or felt any remorse and he definitely had no mercy.

And what made him even more dangerous was that he was very clever, cunning and extremely ruthless.

But what made him more dangerous to her than anyone else, despite of her father's protection, was the way he looked at her with greedy lust that he in no way tried to hide. In his mind she was his to have naked on her back beneath him. His opinion of women in general was ground low and the only thing that kept him off of her was her father, the one man Diamond seemed to fear or respect – Serena wasn't sure which – but that did not stop him from touching her when he saw the chance.

Which was why Serena was _very_ careful to avoid him, especially when she was alone. He hadn't managed to back her into a corner yet despite his numerous attempts and Serena had absolutely no intention of ever letting him do so either.

Serena instinctively knew that if and when he did get her alone with no means of escape, she wouldn't like it at all. Of all the things she had come to fear in the past year Diamond was number two on her list, one place above her father.

It wasn't her father specifically that Serena feared most; it was the day that his patience finally snapped and he removed the "kid-gloves" he'd been handling her with and finally forced her to give her him what he so obsessedly wanted from her.

That was the only thing Serena feared more than Diamond.

But regardless of her fear of Diamond, Serena refused to cower before him. She was not nearly as weak as Diamond believed her to be and each and every one of their encounters Serena was determined to show him just how wrong he was about her.

"After I shower and change." Serena snapped frostily, and despite her survival instincts that screamed at her not too, Serena turned her back to him, intent on going to her room.

Serena hadn't even made it two steps before long bony steel-hard fingers closed around the back of her neck through her hair and tightened painfully, causing Serena to cry out in startled pain.

Reflexively, Serena reached behind her and grasped hold of his thicker wrist with both hands in a vain attempt to ease his hold, but even though he wasn't large for a man, he was still very strong.

"You will do as your father orders." Diamond hissed with malevolence in her ear as he yanked her backward until she her back was plastered along his flat hard chest. "And one way or another you will learn not to talk back, even if I have to beat it into you."

Serena clinched her teeth against another pained cry as he tightened his grip on her neck even more in order add more emphasis to his words. Diamond was sadistic and she was in no way going to give him more pleasure from hurting her than he was already getting.

"Let go of me!" Serena demanded as firmly as she was able given her position, which wasn't nearly as much as she would have liked.

Instead of obeying, Diamond chuckled menacingly in her ear and Serena doubted the Devil himself could have sounded more nefarious.

"The way you constantly fight me almost makes me think you enjoy my hands on you," Diamond angled his mouth closer to his ear until he had his lips brushed her ear with every word, his breath hot on her flesh. "Is that what you want, Serena? My touch? Because you don't have to try so hard if that's what you really want. I am more than willing to give _it_ to you."

At the double meaning of his words, Serena came dangerously close to gagging. The very thought of being raped by Diamond was so unbearable that Serena had to fight to keep her brunch from making a violent reappearance.

Serena would rather die than let Diamond hurt her that way.

And that was when Serena felt Diamond's left hand on her stomach where it promptly worked its way up under her shirt to stroke the naked flesh of her stomach, the tips of his fingers were dangerously close to the bottom of her workout bra.

Serena went frozen in near terror. Diamond had had his hands on her before but he'd never managed to make it this far and she was terrified that he wasn't going to stop, that she _couldn't_ make him stop.

Surely Diamond wasn't going to force her right here in the middle of the foyer in the middle of the day? Not with her father close enough to hear her scream through the open doors that separated the foyer and his study?

Releasing her hold on his wrist that was still holding her neck tight enough that he was going to leave bruises, Serena grasped hold of the hand under her shirt and pushed downwards with all her might.

But Serena couldn't budge his hand; she might as well have been trying to move the white stone stair banister. He was too strong, so much stronger than even she had ever realised. He wasn't muscle bound but Serena could feel just how hard his chest was against her back and she now knew that he was deceptively strong.

To her horror, Serena realised that she had even less chance against him than she'd feared.

But she was made of sterner stuff than that. Serena had spent most of her life being the smallest and physically weakest one in any group, and so she'd learned to defend herself in other ways. She couldn't fight him but she had other weapons at her disposal.

Serena forced her fear back and even though she stopped trying to pull his hand away from her body, she did not release her hold on his thick wrist.

"You want me?" Serena whispered softly, focused on him with every fibre in her being, taking notice of his every little movement. She forced her voice to sound borderline-seductive. "Well, you'll have to kill me first because that's the only way I'll ever let you touch me. But I don't think I have to be that drastic just yet. Did you know that my father hates being made a liar out of almost as much as he hates being defied?"

Diamond said nothing but his fingers flexed agitatedly against her stomach and Serena knew she had shifted his focus from what had he really wanted to do to her and what her father would do to him if he caught Diamond touching her against her will.

The only one thing that Serena was grateful to her father for was that he had promised that no harm would come to her under his _"protection"._ He had even warned his _"staff"_ not to lay a hand on her unless absolutely "necessary" – translation: to prevent her from escaping.

The seconds ticked by as Diamond thought her words over and then without warning Diamond thrust her away from him, releasing her and returning his hands to his side.

Caught off guard, Serena stumbled a step before finding her balance. She immediately whirled around, keeping her eyes on Diamond even as she took another step back to put herself well out of his reach.

Diamond sneered furiously at her, his evil black eyes threatening. "You won't always have your father's protection. When his patience with you is at an end, nothing will keep me from you. As much as your father values his word he wants that one thing more."

Serena couldn't keep from flinching, knowing that Diamond was right. Which was why she had to act and soon. She had to get away from Diamond and her father as soon as she possibly could and there was only one way to do that.

Her Plan.

Diamond spun on his heel and stalked angrily away from her.

Serena remained where she was, her eyes fixed on him, until he left the foyer and the sound of his expensive Italian shoes had faded away.

Serena breathed in sheer relief. After dealing with Diamond, Serena knew she had better face her father now because when she made it back to the privacy of her bedroom she was definitely going to lose it.

Serena didn't know how much more of this she could take. Her mother had taught her to be strong, but Serena didn't know how much longer her strength would last. She was alone and she trapped in in father's house of horrors, waiting in anxiously for the day her father had had enough of her defiance.

And it was coming. Serena could almost feel it. She had no choice. She had to act as soon as she possibly could. She hadn't spent a year carefully and discretely planning her way out only to run out of time.

Serena closed her eyes and took a silent moment to collect herself, refusing to let herself think or to feel Diamond's cruel touch that lingered on her skin, and would linger for the next week, at least until the fresh bruises Diamond had just given her had healed and faded.

Certain that she was in control of herself once again, Serena opened her eyes and straightened her clothes, taking another deep breath in effort to slow down her racing heart.

Lastly, Serena braced herself to face down her father and she crossed the foyer and stepped into her father's dimly lit posh study.

"Yes?" Serena snapped impatiently in way of greeting.

Her father looked up from the papers spread out in front of him on his dark polished desk that was large enough to seat half a dozen men comfortably with disapproval and mild warning on his harsh face.

Serena mentally shook her head in exasperation at his disapproving expression. She would have thought that he would be used to her defiant behaviour by now.

"I am hosting a dinner party on Saturday night. You will be attending. See that you have appropriate attire. And you _will_ be on your best behaviour." His tone left no room for argument. He had given his instructions and he expected them to be followed without question.

But Serena was far bolder than that. "I'm not going to another one of your "fix-up events". I don't know how many times we have to go through this before you get it. No matter what you do, no matter how man "boys" you throw me at, it won't work."

Her father narrowed his eyes dangerously on her. Anyone else would have seen the dangerous warning in his eyes and felt that instinctive fear for their lives but Serena had learned months ago that as things stood she was the one person he wouldn't risk hurting. Not if he wanted to get what he was so desperate to have from her.

Serena had no doubt that one day his patience – one of his key characteristics that had won him his current position complete with massive wealth, power and respect – would snap and then she would regret her candour, and when that day came Serena would end her life than give him what he wanted.

Right now, as her father saw it, if he wanted to get from her what he had become so obsessed with then she had to be healthy and uninjured, also as free of stress as she could possibly be. That was the only reason why he allowed her her daily runs and her trips into the city.

Serena knew well that her father did not understand why she continued to fight him every step of the way, even though he should have.

She was his prisoner, one who would escape if she were ever given half the chance. She might have been imprisoned in a mansion and given access to more money than she could spend in a lifetime, but she was still very much a prisoner.

One who absolutely refused to let herself be seduced by her father's extravagant lifestyle and his money or anything else he possessed.

One of the reasons, other than the fact that her own father was her warden, was that Serena knew very well where all her father's money came from. Her father's blood money. Every dollar he had was soaked in the blood of others, a lot of whom Serena would have considered innocent.

And spending that money on legitimate things was one of the few delights Serena had, giving the blood money back to those whose hands were clean.

Although her father hadn't realised that. No, her father thought she spent so much on her shopping trips because she actually wanted what she brought.

But that couldn't be further from the truth. Serena was just as satisfied with generic brands brought from department stores, even thrift shops, as she was with what she brought from the high priced boutiques.

Well, except for her running shoes. Serena had to admit to herself that her expensive running shoes were the most comfortable shoes she'd ever worn in her life. Honestly, in these shoes – of which she had half a dozen pairs – it felt like her feet were surrounded and supported by cushions of air, almost as if her feet never touched the ground at all.

Her father slammed his hand down on his desk loudly, making Serena jump and her thoughts return to the present.

Serena watched as her father slowly, menacingly, rose to his feet, and while keeping both hands on his desk to support his weight he leaned forward, his narrowed angry eyes fixed on her.

Serena's father was a relatively small man but the air of power and authority he carried around on his always straight tensed shoulders made him appear bigger – and mightier – than he really was.

There were those rare times, when her father was showing her what she was sure he considered caring kindness, that Serena could almost see the man in him that her mother had fallen so deeply in love with all those years ago.

Her mother had told her stories of her father when she'd been young. How they'd met and how he had won her heart, how he had proposed to her. Back when he'd been a completely different man than he was now.

To others her father was known by many names, "the Father", "the Boss", "Mr Cedrone", to those he considered friends he was "Kenneth" but to her mother he had always been Ken, the young man who had made her fall so hopelessly in love with him.

Before he had started to climb the ladder of power within "the Family", drawn in by his own father and generations of strict tradition, he had been a completely different man, according to her mother. In her mother's stories her father had been funny and caring and compassionate.

And he had dearly loved her mother.

But then just after Serena had been born, he had started to change. And her mother Irene had tried so hard to stick with him and keep the man he had been alive in him.

Sadly though, according to her mother, their love had not been enough to keep him from becoming corrupted by his father's influence and the feeling of power the money and respect had given him.

And then the day had come that Irene had realised that she hadn't been staying with her husband because she loved him but because she feared him to the point that she couldn't even bare his touch. Irene had known that the kind and loving man her husband had once been was long gone, even before that night six months after Serena's younger brother had been born.

Irene had come home from shopping towing her two dearly loved children with her. Serena had been three and her brother had been six months old. Fortunately they had been too young to understand that it was blood and a hell of a lot of it, that her father had been washing off his hands.

It had been at that moment that Irene had known that she had to leave her husband for the sake of her children. Irene had loved her children more than her own life and that had given her the courage to act.

It hadn't been until Serena's twelfth birthday that her mother's stories of her father had turned dark and Serena had learned the rest of what had happened.

Irene had planned her escape as best she could. She had even managed to get her hands on enough cash that she could buy knew identities for the three of them, and then disappear and live well enough until she could find herself a job.

But Irene had been caught only days before she had planned to act but thankfully her father, somewhere deep inside, had still felt some love for his wife.

Irene had begged him to let her go, that she couldn't live like this anymore. She had sobbed and begged and for the first time had allowed her husband to see what she had been hiding from him, her terror and her fear for her children. Her soul-deep pain and misery.

Irene had never known why he had done it, why he had for a brief moment become more of the man she had fallen in love with than he had been in years, but he had offered her a one-time offer that she could take or die.

There would be no divorce. Ever. As long as Irene never let another man touch her, that she never remarried, Irene could go and he would not look for her. She could even take Serena with her, but Sammy had to stay; Sammy was going to take over the Family business one day.

Serena could still remember the agony in her mother's tear-filled eyes when she'd told Serena this. It had nearly killed her to leave her child behind; she had sobbed wretchedly at the memory at that moment that had been the worst of her entire life.

For the sake of her daughter, for the sake of both her children, Irene had taken the deal. She had tried to explain her decision to Serena that night, justify the choice she'd made but she hadn't needed too. Serena had been old enough to understand that her father never would've let her brother go but at the same time her brother would be safe. He would grow up and maybe one day make his choice about what kind of man he wanted to be.

And so for fourteen long years Irene had tortured herself every day over the choice she'd been forced to make, never letting herself be truly happy, not even for a moment.

Irene had carried the guilt of that one choice until the day she'd died.

Serena had been seventeen at the time, only months away from turning eighteen when a drunk driver had run her mother off the road on her way home from work late one night.

Serena had been devastated but she had finally come to peace with her mother's death knowing that wherever her mother was she was finally at peace. Maybe even happy.

And since Serena had only been a number of weeks from her eighteenth birthday, at which she would inherit her mother's life insurance that was surprisingly large considering that her mother had been a waitress for the last five years, the courts had granted her legal emancipation. She hadn't had to go into any care of any sort, instead she'd stayed in the apartment she'd shared with her mother until her eighteenth birthday, surviving off her own hard earned savings – she'd worked in odd cash paying jobs since she'd turned twelve and learned the truth – and the support checks from the government.

The day Serena had turned eighteen she had moved out of the apartment, knowing that her mother would want her to get on with her life and find her own happiness.

Maybe it was some sort of twisted act of Fate, but ten months after her mother's death, eight months after Serena had turned eighteen, Serena had learned through her Aunt on her mother's side that her brother had died only five weeks before her mother had.

Serena had never known her younger brother but she had mourned for him regardless, because her mother had loved him and had carried him with her every moment of her life.

Serena never could have known what her brother's death had set in motion in Los Angeles that was a thousand miles away from where she'd settled herself. She could never have known how her brother's death had destroyed and twisted something inside her father to the point that it had driven him insane.

"SERENA!"

Serena gasped and jumped, startled as she was once again brought back to the present. Serena blinked, clearing her thoughts and taking in what her eyes were registering.

Her father was furious, that much was obvious. Being ignored absolutely enraged her father, he downright hated it. He believed that since he was always the most important man in the room that all attention should be on him.

Not unlike a spoiled little boy.

Her father was glaring furiously at her he teeth tightly clenched and he had that dangerous dark look in his eyes that he had whenever she disobeyed him. He was struggling to control his temper.

Serena had learned enough over the last year of her imprisonment beneath her father's roof that to anyone else that looked would've meant pain and possibly even death. Her father was a very dangerous man, a cold-blooded killer, and Serena had no doubt that when his patience with her finally snapped, she would learn just how sadistic and unfeeling her father had become in his years separated from his wife.

But despite that look and feeling the same fear of him that her mother had, Serena refused to take the step back from him that her survival instincts were screaming at her to take.

"You will not fight me on this!" Her father hissed furiously through his clinched teeth, the veins of his forehead and neck popping at the intensity of his barely restrained rage. "You have pushed me to my limits, girl! Know this, push me any further and you'll regret it! I promise you!"

Serena swallowed even though her mouth was dry, but she was used to her father's temper and she knew she had one weapon against him; his own obsession.

"Go ahead then!" Serena wanted to sound defiant and steadfast, but no matter how much she tried to sound unaffected by her father's tempter, her words sounded emotional and distressed. "I'll never give you want anyway! I'll rather die first! So why don't you just get it over with! DO IT! Go ahead, _kill me_."

Her father stared at her for a long time, his eyes blazing with his fury, and seconds turned into a minute, and then two.

Then, in the blink of an eye, her father's rage was gone and he was once again calm and collected. He smoothed his tie against his expensive tailor made stripped Italian suit and once again took his seat, taking on a nonchalant demeanour as he reached for his pen, intending to return to the paper work spread out on his desk in front of him.

He did not look at her again.

"I have no time for your melodrama." Her father told her condescendingly, dismissing her words as though she had never spoken them at all. "You'll be allowed an additional outing this afternoon to get yourself something pretty to wear. I don't want to hear another word about it."

And just like that, she was dismissed.

Serena was seething, as she always ended up doing in her father's presence. She wanted to scream and throw things at him but she knew the outcome of that. All that would end up happening would be her being restrained by her _bodyguards_ who would carry or drag her to her room and lock her in.

After a long moment of just standing there silently raging impotently at him, Serena turned on her heel and stalked out of the room.

It wasn't until Serena was climbing the first flight of stairs that connected the foyer with the first of the three floors, flanked by two of her four _bodyguards, _that it hit her.

Her father was letting her out this afternoon and she was finally ready. She had finally reached the fitness level she had estimated that she would need to put her plan into action.

Today was the day. She had woken up this morning filled with dread at having to face yet another day in her father's captivity but just like that, today had become _the_ day.

She was ready. Serena had been ready for weeks in every other aspect other than her fitness, but now even that had fallen into place.

The last and final piece had been handed to her by her own father.

An unplanned outing that her _bodyguards_ – each time Serena thought or said it word it was always coated with sarcastic contempt – had less time to prepare for.

It couldn't be more perfect. If she was ever going to put her plan into action it would have to be today, now.

Serena had sworn a year ago that her father would pay for everything he had and continued to do to her and today was the day she would put the first step of his demise into action.

Today was the beginning of her father's end.

It had finally come.

If it worked, Serena would finally have her freedom but if she failed and her father found out it would cost her dearly.

Maybe even more than she was willing to pay.

* * *

><p>Serena was anxious, jumpy.<p>

Impatient and terrified and excited and relieved. All at the same time.

The hardest part was, while waiting for her perfect chance, pretending to be interested in what she was doing while trying hide the turmoil that was clawing at her stomach from her _bodyguards_.

Serena was putting every ounce of her acting ability to the test as she tried to appear casual as she looked through yet another high end boutique for something _"pretty"_ for her father's party.

There was not one item in the store that was below four figures. This was the kind of upscale place that offered all potential customers wine, fruit and pastries while they shopped. There was even the option in this one to have dresses modelled for her by the mostly blond beautiful model-worthy staff.

Serena had never liked any kind of royal treatment and had never really wanted it. And in her current alert and uneasy state of mind it was the last thing Serena was in the mood for.

But Serena forced herself to endure; it was all a means to an end.

It was on purpose that Serena had dragged her_ bodyguards _to several stores and had had to look and consider every single dress.

Serena had been forced to shop for one of her father's _events_ before and each and every time Serena had taken the opportunity to irritate and torment her _bodyguards_ by doing exactly what she was now doing. When she was forced to do something by her father while on one of her outings she would always take her sweet time doing it. She would always spend at least an hour or two in each shop and never buy anything in the first six or seven.

At least not on the first visit. Sometimes, just for the sheer joy of it, Serena would drag them all back to the first or second shop they'd visited to "reconsider" one of the dresses.

By the time they made it back to her father's mansion, all four of the _bodyguards_ were tired and irritable as all four were big men wearing thick suits that Serena made them regret wearing – each and every one of the _"security personnel"_ that her father had in his employ was way too serious and well paid to dress down in any way; while on duty not one of them so much as removed their jacket or loosened their tie.

Hell, Serena didn't know the eye colour of most of them as they hardly ever removed those stupid spy sunglasses they all wore that Serena knew made them feel as badass as the gun each of them carried concealed on their person.

Serena actively hated her captures – until her father had kidnapped her hate had never really been part of her nature – and even though it was petty and childish, Serena enjoyed making them suffer in whatever little ways she could.

Except today, this time the purpose of her drawn-out shopping trip was for more than her childish satisfaction.

Luckily, not one of them seemed to notice that she was unusually and falsely fully engaged in her task, even trying on more dresses than usual in more stores.

But as usual, upon declaring in a whiny teenage-girl huff that there was nothing here that she liked and she wanted to try the pink one on again in the second store they'd visited, Serena picked up her bag that not one of them had noticed was unusually baulky and just a little too heavy and stalked out of the store with her four irritable and tired _bodyguards_ in tow.

Serena glanced discretely at her watch. It was late afternoon.

It was time.

Seated in the back-seat of black SUV Serena forced herself to sit still as she stared out the window not seeing any of the city beyond the tinted glass and focused on the steps of her plan, running each through her head over and over until they were firmly imprinted on her brain. Even returning to this one particular boutique was all part of her plan.

In fact, this boutique was the perfect starting point and had everything Serena needed. If everything went according to plan and she didn't screw up, then in less than an hour's time she would be putting her fitness to the real test.

It was what she'd been training for after all.

Time seemed to be passing quickly and slowly at the same time as they made their way across the city back to the place that had been her true destination all along. It had nearly killed Serena when she'd left it earlier in the afternoon but it had all been a necessary part of her plan. If she'd attempted her plan on the first visit then she would've had almost no chance of success as her _bodyguards_ had been way too alert and invigorated, but now, finally, they'd begun to tire which made their focus half as sharp as it would've been otherwise.

That was one mistake her father had made. Instead of having two groups of men watch her over shifts, her father used the same four all the time. The only breaks they had during the day were when she was safely at her father's mansion. At the mansion only one of the four had to keep an eye on her as there was almost the entirety of her father's security team spread out of the mansion and it's grounds to keep an eye on her.

The only time Serena had any real privacy was when she was in her bedroom. No one watched her while she was inside but the only two exits were always under surveillance.

That was why this was her one and only chance. She had a plan to escape the grounds but she could only use it once and she had a purpose for that one time. It was a crucial part of her plan. If everything went according to plan that one escape path would not be wasted.

Serena shifted her right foot, feeling the tracking device that was always on her ankle brush against the material of her black dress pants.

Her father took no chances with her.

The SUV pulled to a stop making Serena lift her head and look over the shoulder of the passenger seat in front of her to see that they had arrived. The driver had parked on the street right out front of the boutique.

Perfect.

So far, everything was going according to plan but the hardest part of Stage One was still to come.

Serena subconsciously tightened her grip on her baulky shoulder bag.

This was it. Her one chance. If she failed Serena knew that she wouldn't get another, not for a very long time if at all.

As always Serena remained seated as the four _bodyguards_ exited and took their positions between her door and the stores _front_ entrance.

Her door opened and Serena drew in a deep breath for courage, knowing she was as prepared and ready as she was ever going to be. She was so terrified but she WAS NOT going to let her fear of her father make her hesitate for even a moment.

Her mother had been brave and made the difficult choice when she'd been forced too and Serena was her mother's daughter; she was going to do whatever needed to be done.

Serena owed it to her mother and to herself, but what Serena owed her father was a whole lot more and Serena was going to see that her father got _everything_ he deserved. Serena would make sure of it.

Ignoring her _bodyguards_, Serena slid out of the vehicle and without acknowledging either of the _bodyguards_ that opened both doors for her, she stepped into the cool and too brightly lit boutique. Every surface except for the dresses and accessories themselves were pure white, that clean sterile white that made the colours of the stores stock appear all the more brilliant, more vibrant. Serena had no doubt that the stark contrast between the flawless perfect white and the dresses and gowns was no accident. It had been designed this way to make the overpriced stock more appealing.

Serena had no doubt that it was a ploy that worked on many women but not on Serena; Serena only found all the white irritating as it hurt her eyes.

What made this boutique so appealing to Serena wasn't it's stock or it's service, but it's layout and it's location.

Not wanting to wait one more moment, Serena walked straight to the pink dress that she'd already picked out on her first visit earlier in the afternoon, and made a deliberate show of considering it very carefully and very seriously, turning it this way and that.

And of course her obvious interest in the garment quickly caught the attention of the too pretty bright red-haired sales assistant – who wore a too-thick layer of make-up on her face – wearing black high heels so high Serena had to wonder how she didn't fall forward the moment she tried to stand in them.

The moment the sales assistant was close enough, Serena pointed at the dress and plastered a fake smile on her face.

"I want to try this on again." Serena purposefully made it a demand, not a request.

At her insistent and rude tone the sales assistant didn't falter in the slightest. Obviously as it was the second most expensive dress in the store all the sales assistant saw was her juicy commission.

"Of course." The sales assistant said too sweetly with big fake smile on her perfectly painted face as she took the dress from the central main display and indicated towards the back of the store with her other arm. "This way."

Serena followed a step behind as the sales assistant lead her to the very spacious changing rooms at the back of the shop – that just happened to be located in the hallway that lead to the door that connected the store to the back rooms.

Back rooms that just happened to have a back door that exited out into the alley behind.

Before the sales assistant could lead her to the first dressing room in the white hallway, Serena swiftly took the dress from the sales woman without snatching it and slipped into the next dressing room along before the sales assistant could utter a word, and closed the door behind her.

There were six fitting rooms in total, three on each side of the hallway that ended in the door that lead to the back rooms and each had a proper door that when closed gave the occupant complete privacy. There was even a flimsy lock on the door that Serena promptly clicked into place.

It was an actual room, as opposed to the stalls with curtains found in most department stores and smaller boutiques. The fitting room was the size of a standard non-executive office with mirrors on all four walls, even the back of the door so that the customer could see the gown from all angles and was well lit by the long fluorescent lights above.

But Serena didn't care about any of that. The moment she locked the fitting room behind her, Serena sprang into action.

She dropped the gown carelessly on the floor, not caring about it in the least. It was just a prop after all. Serena ripped her clothes off as fast as she could, all but her underwear – that she wore when running for the extra support. Even her all-purpose sandals were discarded.

Then Serena dove into her bag, emptying all its contents onto the floor on top of her black dress pants so any noise would be muffled by the fabric on the white tile floor. With almost frantic movements Serena spread the items out so she could find what she needed without digging through the pile.

The first things Serena grabbed were the aluminium foil folded into four-layers-thick strips and the scotch tape.

Oh God, Serena hoped this worked. Everything depended on this one thing working. Unlike everything else in her bag this was the one thing that she hadn't been able to test without giving her intentions away.

And it was the one thing that could betray her entire plan and ruin it beyond recovery.

Settling in the middle of the floor, Serena studied the tracking device secured to her ankle for a brief moment before reaching for the first strip.

At first Serena had wanted to remove it all together but after spending countless hours studying it, Serena had realised that it wasn't going to come off without setting off an alarm as there were wires connected to the device that ran through the entire length of the thick black strap that bound it to her ankle. Her father had warned her that it was tamper proof and he'd _almost_ been right.

Her father had meant that she couldn't get it _off_ without setting it off but it was not an unbeatable piece of technology. So she had altered her thinking and had come up with a solution that _should_ work.

That was why Serena was quickly threading the six inch long and one inch wide strips of aluminium foil around the black box attached to the band around her ankle, using all ten strips as she had to assure that every inch of the box was wrapped beneath multiple layers of aluminium foil.

Once Serena had wrapped the last strip around the black unit, making it twice as bulky as it was before, Serena completed her task by securing the aluminium foil in place with the scotch tape, making the tracking anklet bulkier than what she was used too.

Serena studied her work for any sign of gapes, wondering if it had worked and how long it would be before someone at the mansion noticed that she was no longer a blimp on their computer screen. Had one of the fathers goons already noticed and was in the process of contacting her _bodyguards_ and her father?

How closely was the signal from her tracking anklet monitored? Was there someone there watching at all times even after a year of her wearing it without incident? Did they watch the screen every moment that she was off the mansions grounds? Was it checked every so often or was it only used when someone wanted to know exactly where she was?

That was the one unknown that made Serena count every second, every heartbeat; every ounce of hope she had was on the latter.

Well, now that it was done, one way or another Serena was going to find out. What she was not going to do was waste a single moment more thinking about it now that she was putting her plan into action at long last.

Serena leapt to her feet, not giving her anklet another thought and reached for the dress where it lay in an unruly pile on the floor. She then plastered herself along the inside of the door as she opened it and thrust the poofy pink dress through the opening.

Serena was not surprised that the sales woman was waiting on the other side.

"I'll take it and _all_ the accessories too." Serena told the woman whose eyes immediately lit up and Serena could swear that she'd actually seen dollar signs appear in her eyes with the accompanying cha-ching!

"Wonderful! Is there anything else I can do for you?" The sales assistant asked eagerly as she eagerly took the dress from her.

"Can you get everything together and run them up while I dress?" Serena asked, making sure that it was a request not a demand this time. "The men with me know my sizes."

"Of course, it's my pleasure." And the sales woman turned and immediately went to gather everything together, strutting with so much enthusiasm Serena had to wonder just what the woman's commission would be.

As Serena closed the door, knowing that her _bodyguards_ relief at her finally picking a dress would buy her a few more moments of distraction.

Just as she had anticipated.

And Serena was not going to waste them.

Serena had packed a change of clothes that she was now swiftly changing into; each item had been very carefully considered before she'd packed them. First was the snug pair of comfortable and well worn thin denim jeans that allowed her to move just as freely as the sweat pants she wore on her daily runs. The jeans were complete with a belt that was already threaded through the loops of the jeans on which were clipped three pouches that already contained everything she'd need for the next step of her escape plan – the set-up eliminated the need for a purse or bag and were more secure than a pocket which things could easily slip out of.

It took her only a moment to fasten her belt tightly enough that there was no danger of the added weight pulling her pants down.

Next was a pain white cotton long-sleeved shirt that ended just above her belt, baring only a glimpse of her flat belly that was toner than it had ever been in her entire life.

But unlike every other time Serena had ever dressed, Serena did not pull her long blond hair out from under her shirt. Her hair felt a little prickly against her the bare skin of her back but she ignored it as hiding her very distinctive long blond hair was far more important than her comfort.

Next Serena slid her arms into her well-worn dark denim jacket and flipped up the collar to help conceal her face. Which was why Serena had also brought along a dark brown wig – which she'd only been able to get without risking undue suspicion due to that one of her father's "fix-up parties" had been a consume party – and a baseball cap.

Serena quickly slipped the wig on, using the mirrors to assure that all her golden hair was concealed, and then put on the baseball cap to help keep her wig in place and to further hide her face.

Next came her most comfortable pair of running shoes. It was handy that her most comfortable pair was also the pair she wore the most – they looked well-worn which hid how expensive they really were. Her expensive but well-worn shoes would not stick out, nor could anyone tell that they were an expensive pair of shoes that should have been out of the price range of the normal middle class young woman she was disguising herself as.

The last thing was the cheapest watch she owned. It was a gold watch and still worth over a hundred dollars but unless you looked at it closely it looked like a real good but cheap fake. It wouldn't cause her any undue attention.

And just like that Serena was ready, and it had only been a minute or two since she'd handed the pink dress to the sales attendant.

Now was the moment of truth. All Serena needed was a few seconds to make it to the end door. She knew that none of her four _bodyguards_ were standing by her fitting room door but when she'd opened the door to give the sales assistant the pink dress Serena had seen that two of them had an unobstructed view of her dressing room door.

Those were the two that she needed to be distracted.

Serena drew in a deep breath and prayed as she slowly opened the door a crack, barely wide enough to glimpse out.

The one _bodyguard_ Serena could see, the one with the most direct view, was currently talking with the blond sales assistant who had two pairs of shoes in her hand. Both pairs were identical so common sense told Serena that they were different sizes.

The _bodyguard_ pointed at the pink pair of thin-strapped high heels the assistant held in her right hand, obviously pointing out the pair that were Serena's size.

It was now or never.

Without thinking about where the other three were or what they were doing, Serena silently opened the door enough for her to walk through and stepped out, pulling the door closed behind her in the same motion but not closing it completely so that it would appear closed until you were close enough to touch it.

In two wide strides Serena was at the door at the end of the short hallway and between one breath and the next Serena had it open and was through it.

Serena turned, closed it quickly while being careful to keep the door handle turned in her hand so when it closed it made only a very soft thud as the door met the frame.

And instead of just releasing the door handle, Serena slowly turned it all the way back until the latch was back in place, holding the door closed.

Then, and only then did Serena bolt, not wasting any time by taking in her surroundings other than the space between her and the door on the other side of the room with the illuminated green EXIT sign over it.

Someone above must have been on her side because the direct path to the door was completely unobstructed. Unlike the store front, nothing in the store room was white, including the bare concrete floor between her and the door.

Serena reached the door in moments, not seconds and took only one brief scan of the door, looking for any indication that it was alarmed – either burglar or fire – but seeing nothing Serena took the chance and opened it without a moment more lost.

Nothing happened. No alarm sounded.

Serena had done it. It wasn't over yet, not by a long shot, a lot of things still had to be in her favour, but at least for the moment Serena had given her _bodyguards_ the slip.

But her absence would not go unnoticed for long; it would not be very long before they checked on her. She only hoped that they were tired enough from her long _"shopping day" _that they didn't realise that she was taking a little too long in the simple task of redressing herself.

Her past childish behaviour was working for her once again. With any luck they would think that she was taking her sweet time on purpose as she always did just to irate them.

Now that Serena really thought about it, it would most likely be the sales assistant that would notice her missing first as her one of her _bodyguards_ would pay for her items, and with the sale completed the sales assistant would no doubt hope to sell her something else. One thing that had come from all her visits to high end boutiques was that most of the sales assistants tended to be the same and that made them predictable.

The alley was like every other, from the potent smell of dirt and decay to the garbage and empty boxes littering the space.

Serena didn't waste any time considering which way, left or right. She knew the exact route she would take and even had a few detours in mind if needed. Not that there was any question which way she would have gone even if she hadn't already mapped out her route and memorised it – if she went right then she'd come out right at the SUV as the alley turned, exiting only one store down from the boutique's front entrance.

Turning left, Serena ran for all she was worth. She could see the street ahead, maybe fifty feet or so where people were walking back and forth, going on their way.

Her running shoes barely made a sound on the badly cracked grey concrete as she ran. Serena could barely hear the sound of her feet's rhythmic contact with the rough solid surface beneath her, the sounds of the city were louder – the sounds of people and traffic and modern day life.

But the sounds of the city were not the loudest noise in her ears. No, that was her own heartbeat and the sound of her already accelerated breathing.

So much depended on these few seconds. In the alley, despite her disguise her _bodyguards_ would know the petite fleeing figure was her. She had to make it to the street where she could hide in plain sight amongst the busy crowds. If she could make this one step of the plan then her chances of success would increase dramatically.

Only an extraordinary amount of bad luck could stop her then.

But so far it was good luck that was on her side.

The alley flew past in an almost blur and the street ahead seemed to be racing towards her as if she were standing still and it was the street that was coming to her.

It was a surreal feeling.

And just like that, Serena bursted into the street, barely missing a collision with a middle aged man in a Hawaiian shirt beneath a beige jacket, walking with a woman in a bright green sundress.

She had made it!

Serena ducked her head and muttered a quick apology to the couple before she turned right and forced herself to _walk_ with the crowd. She wanted to run, her instincts were screaming at her to run, but she fought them. If she ran she would stick out when what she needed to do was blend in.

In city crowds someone running drew attention but someone walking the same pace as everyone else was less likely to draw attention at all, other than what it took to step around her or walk beside her without bumping into her.

So Serena walked, working hard to slow her breathing so that no one would notice her panting and wonder why she was breathing so hard from just walking.

It wasn't until Serena was half a block away from the alley that she risked a glance at her surroundings to get an idea of her exact location.

The intersection was one store ahead. She was less than two hundred feet from her first destination, the one that she could easily mix in with the crowd and use to put enough distance between the boutique and herself. With any luck at all, it would be several minutes before her _bodyguards_ even laid eyes on the place, possibly even longer as there was no way they could know which way she'd gone after leaving the alley.

There was no possible way they could guess where she was headed, there was no way they could know that she had planned every step of her _escape_.

And every step she put between herself and her father's men brought her time. And with enough time she would be gone. They would check every store in the vicinity before they realised that she wasn't hiding in any and begin searching the city for her.

As powerful as her father was not even he could find her easily in a city this size, but what he could and would do was cut off her exits – the airport, the bus stations, the train station.

Her father was powerful enough that he _would_ find her. Serena had absolutely no doubt about that, between his own goons and those in the various policing forces that he had in his pocket, he would have all possible escape routes covered, not to mention men on the streets actively searching for her.

Serena wouldn't even put it passed her father to put a price on her head and have every lowlife in the city on the lookout for her too.

Which was why Serena was headed the one place that he would never think to look, the one place he would never even consider that she had the impertinence to go.

* * *

><p>Serena stepped over the threshold as the relief washed over her and she finally allowed herself to breathe.<p>

Serena did not stop. She lifted her head eye to see where she was going and kept moving, making her way through the crowded arcade filled with various loud and flashing arcade games and even louder kids aging from around three all the way up to bordering on adult. There were also a few out of place parents and of course the arcade's staff in their distinctive neon-pink uniform T-shirts.

The arcade was like any other. Too loud and filled with happy screaming kids who moved excitedly from game to game, some in small groups while others in not so small groups.

But there was one thing that made this arcade very special to Serena, the reason why she'd crossed the intersection diagonally and walked a quarter up the adjacent block instead of sticking with the crowds on the street.

This arcade ran straight through the middle of the city block which made the gaming area a little too narrow but long, fitting in more games than most arcades in a straight line with a service desk in the middle that was also doubled as a snack bar if the clientele wanted something other than what was offered in the various vending machines spread throughout the arcade.

This meant that Serena was able to walk straight through, unnoticed, from one side of the city block to the other without being out in the open on the street. It also put another city block between herself and her _bodyguards_ that by now had to be searching frantically for her, baffled at how she had managed to give them the slip without betraying any sign to them of her intention to bolt.

And what made the arcade even more perfect was the taxi stand right outside its other exit.

So Serena was able to walk straight through the arcade, out the other end and almost straight into a waiting yellow cab.

The driver didn't even look her way. She gave him the address and when he pulled out into traffic Serena slumped back in her seat in relief so strong that it bordered on exhausting. For the first time in a year she felt safe, or at least safer than she'd felt all year.

This was really happening. After all the months of planning and getting everything together, she had finally been able to do it. There was no doubt that she would pay for what she was doing but how much she paid depended not on her, but on those she was forced to take the risk to trust.

* * *

><p>Serena was tired, no she was downright exhausted, but she had come too far to stop now.<p>

Serena had burned a lot of adrenaline today and it was finally taking its toll on her, but she kept pushing herself onward. Everything now depended on her going through with her highly risky plan. If she was ever going to be free of her father, of his sick obsession with her, then this was the only way.

At first, the plan had been to run, which once she reached this point she could've done, but even if she did somehow manage to get out of the city and by some miracle her father didn't find her, she would spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder too terrified to live her life.

Just as her mother had done.

No, this was the only way. The chances of success were so slim that attempting it made her foolish and possibly suicidal, but it was better than the alternatives. She was never going to give her father what he wanted from her and she wasn't going to wait around until he forced her to give it to him, and she couldn't run.

So this was the only choice. A long time ago her father had lost his humanity and when her brother had died he had lost his mind. There was nothing left of the man her mother had fallen in love with and because of that Serena owed her father nothing, so she didn't feel guilty over her chosen course of action.

But she was afraid.

Afraid of her plan not working, afraid that it would.

Serena sat in the back of the fourth cab she'd hired today, with her head resting on the back of the seat staring out the window at the passing city streets.

Serena felt like some inexperienced recruited damsel in a spy movie but she wasn't going to risk taking one cab from the arcade to her final destination. She had no idea just how far her father's influence could reach but she wasn't going to take any risks. She had to be so careful and if that meant being paranoid too, then so be it. Being paranoid had kept her mother out of her father's hands for the remainder of her life after leaving him and so Serena was going to be even more paranoid than her mother had been.

She had just reason to be so.

The first three cabs Serena had taken had all picked her up and dropped her off at popular places, most of which were tourist locations. The first taxi cab Serena had had take her to the city's largest mall and then she'd walked two blocks south to another taxi stand where she'd asked to go to the closest movie theatre which she had intentionally not named specifically.

At the cinema Serena had waited twenty minutes, taking the time to use the faculties, before she'd walked another two blocks to another local popular arcade where she'd caught her third cab in which she'd asked to be taken to a popular place to eat on a budget.

From this request Serena had known that there were only three possible places that he'd most likely take her too and she hadn't guessed wrong. The taxi driver had taken her to the street markets that quite possibly offered the largest selection of greasy food from the most nationalities where Serena had forced herself to eat half a sloppy but surprisingly delicious loose meat and gravy roll.

That hadn't been the plan but while walking through the market to catch a cab on the other side the various mouth-watering smells had caused Serena's empty stomach to very loudly and persistently demanded substance. She had been exhausted and hungry enough that Serena had reasoned that food would help keep her alert.

Finally, Serena had entered her fourth cab, wiping the last of the gravy from her fingers with a paper napkin, which was where she'd given a very precise address.

The address was six and half blocks from her final destination, the one Serena had been aiming for since the moment she'd realised that she wasn't able to go on the run.

And what seemed like forever and no time at all at the same time, the taxi cab driver pulled into her requested address and Serena paid him out of the cash she'd been saving from all her shopping trips over the past six months. Her father had never let her have more than a couple of hundred dollars in cash at one time, insisting that she use the credit cards that her _bodyguards_ kept on them for most things.

That way he assured two things – that kept the large amounts of money out of her hands and he could keep track of her purchases in case she tried to buy something suspicious.

Like a gun.

Serena stepped out of the cab and into the cool night. The sun had set half an hour ago and the temperature had dropped but Serena barely noticed.

Being cold didn't matter. Nothing mattered, not with her final destination finally within reach.

Serena had a distance to walk, and at this time of night in this area that was outside of the main shopping area, there were no crowds to hide herself in. The best Serena could do was to keep her head down, her hands in her pockets and appear as normal as she possibly could.

Hopefully, Serena would look like a nervous young woman out later than she'd planned in a hurry to get where she was going who wanted to avoid any trouble.

As she walked down the long street that had various towering office buildings on each side, looking up only when she came to a street crossing, Serena carefully kept her mind blank, not allowing herself to think at all.

Because if she did, if she allowed her thoughts to wonder, then Serena had no doubt that by the time she reached her destination, she would have chickened out of her plan and instead have tried to leave the city, deciding that living on the run was smarter and safer than _this_.

Her chances of her Plan actually succeeding were slim but it was her best chance. Her Plan was the most dangerous option, no doubt, but the best option as its results would last the long term. Serena herself was proof that running and hiding didn't work with her father, look at how easily he had found her after her brother had died.

Oh, Sammy. A wave of sadness swept through Serena at the thought of the younger brother Serena had never had a chance to know.

Serena couldn't even remember him as she'd only been three years old, too young to remember a baby.

She had never known Sammy, but he had still been her brother, her blood, whom she had never had a reason to hate. In fact, Serena had felt sorry for him as he had been forced into their father's footsteps and he had paid for it with his life.

If only Sammy hadn't died. Their father most likely never would have gone insane and Serena would have been free to live out her life without knowing just how sick and twisted her father had become.

At least Serena couldn't doubt that her father had loved her brother, or at the very least cared about Sammy as much as his cold closed heart was able too.

It was this life, the Family, the life, that had destroyed Serena's family. It had twisted her father, turned him from a funny and loving man into a cold-blooded killer with ruthless ambition to be at the top of the pyramid and had taken her brother well before his time.

And it was this life that was the very reason why Serena so adamantly refused to give her father what he wanted, even though it would buy her her freedom from him once and for all.

That was if her father kept his word, anyway. There was no telling what her father would do to her once he had what he wanted from her.

Serena shut her eyes tightly, fighting against the tears that had welled up.

Damn it! Serena hadn't meant to let her thoughts wonder! Now she was feeling emotional and that was one of the last things she needed to be when doing what she had to do next.

Needing to distract herself, Serena raised her head and looked around, trying to figure out where she was and how much further she had to go. She had been walking on autopilot for so long, that for all Serena knew she'd walked past the building she was looking for.

But to her surprise, Serena found herself standing out front of the very building she had been headed for all afternoon.

So this was it. The point of no return. Once she entered that building, there would be no choice for her but to see this thing through.

It wasn't too late. There was still the option of turning around and walking away, either taking her chances with running and hiding, or returning to her father's mansion and begging his forgiveness.

Serena swallowed.

No. She had come too far to chicken out now. This needed to be done. It was her only choice, the only way she would ever be free of the man who had scared her since the age of twelve.

Drawing in a long deep breath, needing every ounce of courage she had, Serena lifted her head up high and walked straight into Los Angeles's FBI headquarters.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation who investigated, among other things, organised crime.

* * *

><p>It was close to the end of normal business hours but for what Serena had to say, had to offer, she highly doubted that anyone here would comment on the hour.<p>

Serena walked straight up to the front desk, right up to the woman dressed in a crisp black feminine business suit and white blouse – she looked exactly like Serena expected a member of the FBI to look – who looked up when she heard Serena approach but she did not smile.

"Can I help you?" Asked the woman in a fully business no-nonsense manner, although there was something about her that made Serena think that this woman was about to head home.

Maybe it was the small collection of personal items beside her right arm – an empty black coffee cup and an open leather half bag half suitcase with what looked like an empty lunch-box inside.

"Yes, I would like to speak to someone in Organised Crime." Serena said using in a-matter-of-fact voice. "I believe I have some useful information that the FBI would be highly interested in."

"Oh, I'm afraid most of those Agents would have gone home for the day." The woman looked at her computer screen that Serena could only see the back of. "Would you like to leave a message and someone will get back to you? Or you could make an appointment with an agent if you prefer."

"Trust me when I say that Organised Crime is going to want to speak to me and they won't mind staying late to hear what I have to say." Serena looked her straight in the eye, sensing that she finally was beginning to get the woman's attention.

"You see, my name is Serena Stevens. My father is Kenneth Cedrone. The head of LA's most powerful Mafia Family."

The woman's eyes grew wide. Apparently even the secretaries of the FBI knew the name.

Serena couldn't help but smile just a little.

"I'm here to help the FBI bring down the entire Family."

* * *

><p><strong>Boston. Four hours later . . .<strong>

**4:09 am local time**

Ring. Ring.

Ring. Ring.

Darien groaned into his pillow.

Ring. Ring.

Ring. Ring.

Maybe if he ignored it it would stop.

Ring. Ring.

Silence.

Darien sighed heavily, hugging his pillow closer with the intent on falling back to sleep and returning to the beautiful uncomplicated woman in his dreams who was _very_ _nice_ to be with.

Ring. Ring.

Ring. Ring.

Darien groaned louder this time and with a reluctant and defeated sigh he rolled over onto his back, reached over to the bedside table and switched on the bedside lamp, instantly casting a dim orange glow over the Spartan room that held only the basic furnishings – the single bed he was sleeping on, the bedside table with the ugly brown lamp and the beat-up old dresser by the one scum-coated window.

The only sign that anyone inhabited the space other than the tall man in the bed was the slim flip black cell phone on the bedside table that was out-of-date technology by more than four years.

Ring. Ring.

Ring. Ring.

Habit made Darien check the caller ID before he answered. There were only five people who had his number and each one had one number they called him from programmed into his phone – no names just a four digit code number that in no way would lead to an individual.

If Darien didn't recognise the number then he didn't answer it.

But this number was one he did recognise and of the five people Darien expected to be calling him in the middle of the night, this person was last on the list.

Which told Darien just how important this call was going to be.

Instantly more awake, Darien sat up as he flipped open the phone and put it to his ear.

"Shields." Darien said crisply in way of greeting.

"Did I catch you at a bad time, Shields?" Greeted the emotionless humourless sharp voice that anyone else wouldn't have been able to recognise as belonging to a woman.

"Just sleeping, ma'am." Darien responded, respectfully_._

"Well, trust me. You'll want to hear what I have for you."

"Of course, ma'am." Darien replied promptly to the woman who was so high up the chain of command that one risked nosebleeds just talking to her.

For a moment Darien could have sworn that the woman on the other end of the phone, who was his boss's boss's boss, chuckle. But that was impossible; this was a woman who never smiled let alone actually chuckled. The woman was pure ice, lethal and cunning and at times manipulative, but nothing less would have gotten her to her current position – she was the first woman to ever claw herself into the position she now held – and did very well.

Which was why Darien was all business and respectful when the head _She_ called him. Her official title was the FBI's Organised Crime Deputy Director, but that was nothing more than a cover. What She really was was head of the off-the-books Deep Undercover Division that specialised in Terrorist groups and Organised Crime.

Darien himself had met the woman only once and talked to her on the phone less than a handful of times, as She had subordinates to pass on her instructions to her undercover agents.

So if this woman took the time to call him, then it was guaranteed to be of the uttermost importance.

So, regardless of the fact that Darien had only managed to get two hours sleep in the last three days as he had finally wrapped up his latest undercover mission that had had him undercover in Boston for the last six months.

"I know you just came off a bad one, Shields but I have something you might be very interested in." She told him in a very smooth voice, almost charming. "It's Kenneth Cedrone, we have an in."

And just like, all traces of fatigue were gone and Darien snapped to his feet, every fibre of his being focused on what his boss was telling him. "What?! How?!"

"I thought that would get your attention." Again there was that hint of dry humour in her tone, not quite a chuckle this time though. "Four hours ago, in Los Angeles, a young woman walked into the field office and just like she was ordering a burger, offered us everything we need to bring the entire Cedrone Family down."

"Who is she? What does she want in return?" Darien asked promptly, almost urgently, wishing that he was in her office having this meeting face to face rather than over the phone.

"Well now, that's where this gets interesting. She claims to be Kenneth's daughter."

Darien's heard sank. That was impossible. "He doesn't have a daughter. Not a living one anyway. She died with the wife fifteen years ago."

"Well, according to her that was just a cover for his wife leaving him and taking their eldest child with her." She explained with a hint of amusement. "They disappeared and they did it well."

"What proof does she have?"

"I'll show you everything we have when you get here. How long will it take for you to get to LA?"

Darien looked at his watch and said with all confidence. "I'll be there by morning."

"I thought you would be." Said the voice on the other end of the line right before She hung up.

Darien closed his phone and closed his eyes, taking a moment to absorb what he'd just heard.

All his grown up life Darien had worked hard to get into the FBI, to where he could bring down the ones responsible for taking everything from him. He had tried for years with no success as the Mob families, especially this one, were way too clever at covering their tracks, but now he might finally have a chance to do what he had spent every moment of his adult life trying to do.

But Darien was not going to get ahead of himself. It all sounded way too convenient for him to believe. The long lost daughter of the man at the top of one of the most powerful Mafia families in the country had just walked into the FBI and offered her father up on a silver platter?

_Who_ was this woman? What was her angle? What did she want in return? It had to be something big. He hadn't missed that She hadn't answered him when he'd asked her.

What kind of woman was this long-lost daughter and what exactly was it that she was offering?

Darien knew one thing for sure, if this woman was anything but legit then she was in for a _very _nasty surprise when she ended up being brought down with her father.

But what if this really was the chance he'd been waiting for?

If it was then he wasn't going to let anything or anyone stand in his way.

One way or another he was going to bring this monster and his entire Family down.

* * *

><p>In the early pre-dawn hours of the next morning, a white cleaning service van left from the back exit of the below-ground-level parking area of Los Angeles's FBI Field Office, driven by a harsh looking man in white overalls, underneath which a sleek black service weapon was tucked safely in his concealed shoulder holster.<p>

He had one very important task given to him by a secretly VERY important and powerful woman, and it all revolved around his precious cargo who was at that very moment sitting quiet and still in the hallowed out janitor's cart.

* * *

><p>Chapter End Notes:<p>

**Chapter 2 will be posted soon. I am currently half way through it!**


	3. Chapter 2 - The Plan: Stage 2

Author's Chapter Notes:

**Hi Everyone! Thanks to everyone who reviewed and to those who give honest opinions. **

**To those who are still waiting for replies, please be patient with me a little longer, I'm a little behind on review and query replies.**

**With this story I am aiming to post at least one chapter a month - and so far I think I'm going well. Chapter 3 is more than half written, so it should be posted by midmarch.**

**Hopefully.**

**Enjoy Chapter 2 everyone!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2 – The Plan: Stage 2<strong>

* * *

><p>Serena was going stir crazy.<p>

It had been a whole month since she'd been _"caught"_ after her _"escape attempt"_ and she hadn't been allowed out of her bedroom for the exception of joining her father for dinner in the evenings.

Her father had grounded her like she was eight years old. She was forbidden to leave her room, her laptop and MP3 player had been taken off her and she was forbidden to go on her run – which was the worst punishment of all.

But Serena was not complaining. In fact, she'd expected to face much worse when her father had finally caught up with her. She didn't know exactly what she _had_ expected but being "grounded" hadn't even occurred to her.

Well, no that wasn't correct. She'd expected to be on lock down – she'd even warned the FBI that she might not be let out again for a while – but she had also expected to have at least been slapped around a bit or something – and that had been the best case scenario.

What Serena hadn't expected was her father trying to bore her to death.

But other than being locked in her room and a few things being taken off of her, there had been no other punishment which really surprised Serena.

Why wasn't her punishment more severe? Her father hadn't even been fuming when she'd been dragged kicking and screaming – literally – back to the mansion. He had shaken his head and given her what he'd intended to be a fatherly disapproving look and explained that she was confined to her room until further notice but that had been all.

And best of all, on top of her mild punishment, her father hadn't allowed her to attend the party she'd been shopping for when she'd escaped!

Her meals hadn't even suffered. She still got delicious and nutritious meals that ranged from fresh tasting seafood and shellfish to the best cuts of beef and pork and lamb with fresh salads or perfectly cooked vegetables. For lunch it was always something healthy but delicious and tasty. For breakfast it was whatever she asked for from cereal to pancakes or waffles to bacon and eggs.

Her father had even provided her with a mini bar that was stocked almost daily with an assortment of drinks and snacks.

She even still got dessert after her dinner!

And on top of the mini bar, her father had also brought the treadmill and the exercise bike up from his personal gym so she could still run and exercise.

Although it wasn't nearly the same, Serena was still able to keep herself in top physical condition.

After a full week Serena realised why her meals hadn't suffered as part of her punishment and she had actually smacked herself on the forehead for not realising it sooner. It was the same reason why she hadn't been smacked around.

Her father needed her fit and healthy.

Her father had _expected_ her to at least try to escape, he'd even prepared for it, which was why he hadn't been all that angry and why he'd had everything all set for when she had. He had known exactly what punishment he was going to give her when he got her back.

Now the only thing on her mind was how long she was going to be locked up for before her father would let her out again. She had a feeling that the shopping trips would stop for a while but how long before he let her run again?

Serena had completed the Stage One of her Plan, now she was anxious to get started on Stage Two.

Stage Two. The trickiest stage of her three stage plan. And the most risky. Not so much for herself but to whomever the FBI chose to plant in her father's organisation.

They must have found someone by now, surely. Her requirements hadn't been _that_ difficult, _specific_ maybe, but not beyond the realm of possibility. How hard could it be to find an agent who could go undercover who was near her age and was attractive and charming enough to fool her father?

Oh, and unattached. Serena absolutely refused to go through Stage Two and Stage Three with an attached agent; she had stressed that to the FBI.

Serena knew it took time to establish a cover identity and all that, but they had to have him in place by now, right? He was most likely waiting for her to get off _"lock down"_ so they could get on with Stage Two.

Serena sighed and stretched out, raising her hands above her head and working out the kinks from laying so still on her bed for so long, lost in her thoughts.

Serena had finished her breakfast and had handed the empty tray to one of the men outside her bedroom door. Once her breakfast settled she would spend a while on the treadmill and then maybe she would try to talk her father into letting her outside to use the pool for a bit of vitamin D.

Something that small shouldn't be too hard to get out of him as a small stepping stone back to being allowed outside her room again.

After all, what harm could she do only a matter of feet from her patio door in the backyard by the pool?

Serena smiled to herself as she answered her own question.

She could do a lot more damage than her father could ever dream of, but she wouldn't. After all, in order for the rest of her plan to work she had to get back out into the city. She couldn't do anything from here.

There was an unexpected knock on her door.

Serena sat up and frowned. It was a little earlier than usual that one of the maids came to clean her room, collect her dirty clothes and restock her bathroom and mini bar.

"Come in."

The door opened and Serena gasped in trepidation. It wasn't the maid who entered her room. In fact it was the man she hated and distrusted the most, and that included her father.

Diamond.

What was he doing here? He wasn't allowed in her room! Her father had promised her that! Her bedroom was _her_ space.

Was this her real punishment, come to her at last? Surely her father's patience with her hadn't snapped yet! Yes, she had escaped but she hadn't made it out of the city, he couldn't know about the FBI and when they'd recaptured her she hadn't resisted _that_ muchas it had been obvious that she was well and truly caught.

Serena sprung off the bed and without taking her eyes off of him or turning her back to him she quickly moved away from the bed, instead choosing to put the patio doors to her back. If he had indeed come on her father's order then she'd rather break her bones going over the railing – if she jumped out far enough she might even make the huge Olympic-size swimming pool.

Serena would take her chances.

"What are you doing here?" Serena demanded indignantly, watching him as warily as a cornered wounded gazel would a hungry lion while at the same time trying to keep her fear concealed from him. Instead she intentionally fuelled her own anger that he had dared to enter her room. "Get _out_!"

Diamond didn't move, instead he just continued to stare at her in that way of his that made her blood turn to ice in her veins and she had to fight the urge to throw up. There was no mistaking the greedy malicious lust in his eyes. He wanted her, not just her body she knew but everything that would come from her father to the man she married.

She was her father's only heir and even though Serena had never heard it from her father's lips, she knew good and well what her father had offered a reward to the man who gave him what he so desperately wanted. That man would marry her – against her will or not – and he would eventually inherit everything her father had when he died.

Oh, why did Sammy have to die? If her brother was alive none of this would be happening! No one would have died just because of her a year ago and she would be free to live her life. She would be _free_.

"You're father sent me with a message." Diamond told her with easy-going kindness that Serena knew he was faking. Diamond didn't possess a single iota of kindness or tenderness.

Or mercy.

Serena only became more suspicious. Diamond was too high up to be a messenger. He wasn't here in her room to deliver a message. Most likely he had only used it as an excuse to come into her room, the one place her father promised her that as long as she behaved – and his patience held – she would be safe from the hands of men unless she invited them and their intentions.

Serena didn't know the real reason why her father was being so patient with her and in getting what he wanted most from her but as long as his patience held then he wouldn't hurt her unnecessarily. Maybe her father thought that if he traumatised her too much her health would suffer and then he would never get what he wanted.

Serena tensed, ready to fight or flee. Most likely flee as she'd never be able to fight Diamond with any real chance of winning. He was lean and Serena knew stronger than he looked but he wasn't bulky, however she was slightly smaller than the average woman, slimmer too.

Against Diamond Serena knew she wouldn't stand a chance, which left flight. She would have to move quick and give her leap over the patio railing all she had in hopes of making the pool below, if she did make it Serena had no worries about her well-being. The pool was two point eight metres deep below her first story patio – the deepest a pool was legally allowed to be in the State. It was more than deep enough.

Diamond tilted his head to the side as he studied her, as if trying to work something out but couldn't quite do so.

"Your father has lifted your punishment. You still can't go shopping but your father said you may go for your usual run in the mornings, provided you behave and don't give escaping another try." His eyes narrowed maliciously with warning, but there was still that lust and anticipation in his eyes that made Serena nauseous and afraid. "But be warned. The next time you try something that stupid your punishment will be much worse." He flashed a cruel sadistic grin that twisted his somewhat handsome face until he didn't look human. "It might even be me who dishes out your punishment next time and I don't think I have to tell you that I won't be as lenient as your father."

_'I'll die first,' _was on the tip of her tongue, but Serena managed to catch herself at the last moment. She'd finally gotten what she needed, her father had lifted her lock-down and she was free to go on her run. She would be half an hour later than usual, half an hour later than the time frame she had given the FBI, but she could always hope that whoever they assigned stayed later.

And if not, there was tomorrow. At least she would get out and stretch her legs, get some fresh air and prepare herself for tomorrow.

* * *

><p>Serena hadn't realised how much she'd missed her morning runs. Before now they'd been a necessity, a must, to get her in shape to run fast and far enough put the first stage of her plan into action, but now Serena was finding herself running solely because she wanted too, for the joy of it, never mind that it was actually part of the ploy for Stage Two.<p>

Serena loved the feeling of freedom and the carefreeness of it; for those brief moments Serena could almost believe that there was nothing wrong in the world. There was no plan, no father, no gilded cage, nothing.

She felt free.

And on top of that now that Stage One had been completed, Serena no longer had to push herself if she didn't want too.

Somehow running now felt that much more like freedom than it had before.

Or maybe Serena was just feeling that way because she had been locked up for so long – and she wasn't just meaning the last month.

It had only taken Serena five minutes to dress for her run after Diamond had left her room, and another five to get her _bodyguards_ to pull the SUV around.

Less than twenty minutes after Diamond had left her room, Serena was on the running path in the park.

Serena had decided to do the shortest of her usual routes as she'd been running so much less the last month due to her confinement – and she was both impatient and anxious to see if the FBI agent was in place yet – so Serena reached the coffee shop only forty minutes later than she usually did as opposed to the full hour she'd thought it would take her.

Very aware that her _bodyguard's _eyes were firmly glued to her through the windows, Serena scanned the coffee shop's patrons as discretely as she could, and saw no one out of place; she must have missed the agent.

With a disappointed shake of her head, Serena turned her attention to the menu.

Today Serena decided on a tall mocha with skim milk and raw sugar along with a chocolate croissant – it had been a tossup between the chocolate croissant and the creamy vanilla slice – and with order in hand Serena turned to leave when she saw it. She hadn't even been looking for it as she'd thought that she'd missed him for today, but there it was.

It was unmistakable. And so subtle that she had almost missed it.

How clever this agent was in identifying himself to her. Serena found herself impressed at the ingenious touch.

Her instruction on how the Agent would identify himself had been very specific and oh boy, had the FBI taken her at her word, but in such a subtle way that no one would ever have guessed that it was an object with the purpose of covertly identifying one person to another.

Serena looked up at his face and -.

– time seemed to slam to a halt.

Like someone had just zapped her with a spell, Serena stood frozen in place staring at him with disbelieving eyes.

_Sweet Jesus!_ Serena could not believe it. The FBI had outdone themselves ten times over. They could not have done any better if they had had him handmade just for her. The FBI hadn't just met her requirements; they'd blown them completely out of the water!

He was gorgeous! And then some.

Sitting at the end table by the window and looking more at home in the feminine coffee shop than any woman in the place, sat a man who literally stole her breath away. With short black hair that was just long enough to move when he did and bangs that brushed his eyelashes – she couldn't see the colour of his eyes because he was looking downward at the table. He had a face that the gods themselves could not have sculpted better with a mouth that promised carnal things and forbidden pleasures that she had not yet dared to even dream.

He was tall too. As he was sitting down it was hard for her to guess his height but standing Serena knew that she would be lucky to reach his chin. His shoulders were broad and beneath his ugly green jacket – that did _nothing_ to subtract from his gorgeousness – Serena could see firm muscle that told her that he was strong without being weightlifter strong. And his legs were _long_ – runner's legs. This man was lean, built to run. No doubt about it, this man was a girl's wet dream and every woman's fantasy come to life.

He hadn't noticed her. He was reading a book that was open on the table in front of him as he sipped his coffee from an actual mug, not a paper take away cup like most people used.

And the startling bearing he carried around him, that even from where she stood across the room, Serena was _very very _aware of. The man oozed confidence and sex appeal in spades, so much so that Serena was stunned that every woman in the coffee shop wasn't drooling at his feet. And he had that air about him that loudly proclaimed that he was so much more than what he seemed.

Serena didn't know what the _more_ was exactly; he was just _more_ than anyone else Serena had ever known.

Serena's entire body was tingling with awareness in response to him. She felt too hot, like she'd just run triple the distance than she actually had at top speed. In the middle of a brutal heatwave.

But Serena felt more than that; in fact she was feeling TOO MUCH. She felt tingly and achy and entirely TOO female. It was like everything female in her was instinctively reacting to him as a male. It was an effort just to remember to breathe.

Surely it was just wishful thinking, despite the identifier that he displayed in plain view. _This_ was an FBI agent? He should've been locked up somewhere deep underground for the sake of the female population. He was dangerous, he was sex appeal on legs, if the city's female population learned about him then so many would get hurt as they all trampled over each other to get to him.

But Serena couldn't have been mistaken. The evidence was right there in front of her, pinned to the front of his ugly green jacket – a shade of green that Serena would call a medium green but never _ever_ use to make clothing with.

Or anything else.

Serena could remember her exact words to the FBI because she'd rehearsed them over and over before her meeting with them.

_'I'll know your agent by the white and red roses he has with him. I'll leave the exact details to you, but at least one white and one red rose. To avoid bad luck, as he will know me, I will know him by the first thing he says to me that will contain the words red and white.'_

A part of Serena didn't want to approach him, didn't want to get closer to the man who was making her feel more like a woman than she ever had in her entire life.

Feel like a woman? Who was she kidding? She felt like she was an animal in heat! What she wanted to do with – to – him had nothing to do with her plan and everything to do with being a woman.

But she had too. Serena had to know.

Blinking as she came back to her senses, realising that she had been standing there in the middle of the shop staring dumbly at him for who knew how long, Serena drew in a deep and walked calmly over to him, or as calmly as she could when her legs felt so weak.

Huh. And wow.

Serena had never gone weak-kneed over a guy before. She'd always thought that going weak-kneed had been an expression or something like that. She'd never known it that actually happened for real.

* * *

><p>Darien was relieved when she <em>finally<em> walked into the coffee shop that he'd been visiting every morning for three weeks waiting for her. He'd been warned that it might take a while for the daughter to be let out again after her little stunt – and her secret visit to the FBI – but Darien had honestly thought that a while had meant a week or two, not a month!

But finally Darien had caught sight of her walking into the feminine coffee shop where women had been approaching him almost constantly.

Normally his appeal to women was more of a useful tool in his profession than it was a pain in the ass, but not this time. In the past, if he'd wanted to be left alone, Darien had worn wear a fake wedding band just to keep the number of women throwing themselves at him at a minimum, unfortunately he couldn't do that this time because being unattached was crucial part of his cover.

Darien was good at his job and good at pretending to do something while really doing something else. For instance, the book that lay open in front of him. He had stared down at each page for an almost equal period of time but he had not read one word. Instead he'd been using it as a cover to inconspicuously keeping track of what was happening around him, inside and outside the coffee shop, and who came and went – who the regulars were and who only dropped by once or twice.

And a month of doing this Darien knew a fair amount about not only about the store's staff and regular customers but also those who frequented the gym next door, the dry cleaners across the street and the residents who lived in the street, mostly in apartments above the businesses.

And except for the four armed men vigilantly watching his target, there was nothing too far out of the ordinary going on.

Although at some point, Darien would have to report the drug dealer who lived above the dry cleaners to the local uniforms. There were way too many people – the wrong sort – coming and going to let it slide.

The dry cleaners might even be a front for something. You never really knew until you investigated. Darien had long ago learned that the most innocent looking people and establishments can quite often turn into fronts for various illegal activities.

And then, after almost an exact month, _she_ had FINALLY walked in while her four-man armed goon squad waited outside. They were probably felt like most other men who neared this place; they felt on the verge of being emasculated in the overly feminine atmosphere.

It was a good thing that Darien was very confident in his sexuality and had his mission to keep his butt coming back to the same chair every morning or else he never would've been able to stand it.

While the target did not notice him at first, Darien had known her from the moment he'd laid eyes on her. Of course he'd watched all the tapes of her two hours in the interrogation room at FBI headquarters and had memorised the photo from her captured still from the tapes for her file, but none of it had done her justice at all.

Darien had been prepared for her on paper but in real life there was nothing that could've prepared him for her in the flesh.

And very fine flesh it was too. Pretending to be her smitten boyfriend was not going to be a problem at _all_.

In her almost skin tight jogging clothes – a well-fitting pink sleeveless singlet shirt and skin tight white three quarter pants – Darien could really _appreciate_ the sight of her. She was tiny compared to most of the women in the coffee shop, with a narrow waist and slightly curvy hips despite her pettiness and, when she had turned around to place her order, she revealed a shapely backside that damn near had him drooling.

And her legs, oh good lord, her legs! She had legs that seemed to go on forever. The kind of legs that had him fantasising already, wanting to feel them wrapped tightly around his waist as he made hungry and passionate love to her.

And her blonde hair was golden! Darien had never seen a shade of blonde like it before, and he knew that it didn't come from a bottle either. Darien had good instincts, which had saved his ass more times than he could count, and he just knew that her hair was all natural. And her hair was _long_; it was pulled back in a plait at the base of her neck right now that caressed her _fine_ heart shaped backside, so when it was free it must have reached to at least her thighs, although his common sense told him that her hair was much longer than that.

Her skin, even though it was flushed from the exertion of her run, was as mildly pale and as flawless as fresh milk.

But what really caught his attention – and his interest – was her mouth. Her lips were deep red, blood rose red and again Darien highly doubted it was anything but her natural colouring, that were so inviting that Darien actually had to tighten his hold on the edge of the table to keep him from getting up and covering her mouth with his own. He wanted to kiss her, to taste her, to find out if she tasted half as sweet and forbidden as she looked.

And that was when she saw him. When saw the pin he wore clearly displayed on his favourite jacket. A red and white rose, their deep green stems intertwined almost like barbed wire.

When Darien had heard about her identifier, he had immediately dismissed using living flowers. One day would be doable, inconspicuous, but every day until she was let out? It would have definitely drawn too much unwanted attention to him.

It hadn't taken him long to decide on a pin; it was subtle enough that he could wear it every day, while at the same time clearly displaying it. So the FBI had found him exactly what he'd needed. A pin the right colouring and design big enough to be seen from a short distance away but small enough that it wasn't too obvious.

Darien still had his head bowed over his book, pretending to read, so she didn't realise that he was already _very_ aware of her as she stood frozen on the spot, staring at him with the most bedazzled expression on her face and, strangely Darien had the impression that she had momentarily stopped breathing.

Wow. This woman was a _brilliant_ actress. If she was going for that completely be-spelled at first sight approach, then she'd hit it dead on the head. As the seconds past Darien had to admire her more and more. This was an award winning performance.

While she continued to stare transfixedly at him, Darien took the opportunity to study her eyes, and oh man, did this girl have those damsel eyes that cried out to a man to protect and possess her or what? And it wasn't just that they were the most startling shade of sky blue that Darien had ever seen, the kind that gave the illusion that she could look straight through everyone she met to see them for what they really were.

There was something in her eyes that called out to him, an innocence, a purity, that even though he didn't know her and this was just part of the job, made him _want_ to protect her from everything bad in the world. To right now, take her far away so her that father and the bad men in his employ couldn't hurt or threaten her ever again.

Which was ridiculous! What had gotten into him?! Darien gave himself a mental shake. He had to get his head on straight or he was going to blow this undercover operation before they even got started.

Besides, regardless of everything she'd said and done to get the FBI's attention, this woman could just as easily be setting him up for something. She was the daughter of his worst enemy and he couldn't afford to ever forget that, no matter how sweetly innocent and bewitching her eyes appeared to be.

And then the golden beauty visibly shook herself out of her stupor and made her way over to him; the only thing that betrayed her aforementioned shaken state was her only-just noticeable unsteady stride.

Maybe from her run?

When she came to a halt beside him Darien could not fail to realise that she was barely over a foot taller than he was sitting.

"I don't think I've ever seen a man in here reading a novel before," Serena stated, for some reason not feeling shy at all, which was strange for her.

Serena had never been one of those women with the kind of confidence with men that she could just walk up to a total stranger and engage in conversation with him before. She didn't lack confidence normally, but when it came to men who looked like _this_ Serena found herself reverting back to the awkward girl she'd been in her early teenage years.

Perhaps knowing that this reincarnation of a Greek god was the FBI agent she was going to get into her father's organisation, and therefore wouldn't turn her down, made it easier for her this one time.

The thought seemed to settle her nerves and, with more confidence than Serena had ever possessed in her life, she went on without even knowing what she was going to say. "What could be so fascinating that could make you completely oblivious to the fact that every woman in here is staring at you?"

He smiled with genuine amusement up at her and it was all Serena could do to remain on her feet. This man oozed sex appeal but he had a smile that could melt rock. He held up the book he was reading so she could see the cover that had no pictures or anything decorative on it. Only the title and author written in small golden font on the aged navy blue fabric cover.

"_Tales of the Red, White and Blue by Charles Glass._" He answered even though she could clearly see the information for herself, all the while he maintained eye contact with her, communicating his vital message without words.

Serena had been expecting the words but it was a struggle not to visibly react to them as she was well aware of the three of her four _bodyguards_ watching them through the windows. If they noticed _anything_ off about her behaviour then she very well risked botching her plan before it even really began.

Serena smiled down at him, nodded her head once indicating at the book and replied kittenishly, "Sounds fascinating. I can see why you haven't noticed all the women in here drooling over you."

And with that, Serena turned and walked straight out of the coffee shop. She walked straight to the waiting black SUV barely noticing that she was being flanked as usual by two of her _bodyguards_.

Thank heavens Serena had planned even this part through beforehand or else she might have really screwed up the "first met".

So _that_ was her FBI agent. Wow. He was not what she'd been expecting at all, but at least if she had to shack up with an undercover agent it wasn't going be any sort of hardship.

So Stage Two had officially begun and Serena was not unprepared for it. She had spent a great deal of time planning each stage. Stage One had been all about getting to the FBI and setting up the undercover operation which had mainly required her to be cunning and fast. Now Stage Two was all about setting up a fake romance that would lead to a fake relationship which would test her acting ability and every manipulative skill she possessed.

At least from now on Serena wouldn't be in this alone. He might be an FBI Agent, who was only using her to take down her father and the Family, but they shared that one goal and that would be enough.

Hopefully.

* * *

><p>Every morning for the next week the FBI Agent was there waiting for her, sitting at the same table, but they shared nothing but brief glances and coy smiles. Which of course was all part of the Plan as Serena had warned the FBI that they were all going to have to be patient because it was going to take time.<p>

Her father would never buy their relationship if it happened too fast; it had to appear to be a strong natural attraction to each other was making it impossible for either of them to ignore each other.

Serena had been smart about this Stage. She had planned it as realistically as possible. Her own father, who was a very dangerous man, was holding her prisoner and Serena did consider herself a caring and considerate person who under normal circumstances never would've endangered anyone by getting involved with them. As a result their "relationship" had to grow gradually over a period of time, all the while Serena had to appear as if she were trying to fight it, to keep her distance from him but was failing.

Which wasn't too hard. Serena was _definitely_ attracted to him. She was only nineteen but she knew what she was feeling, although it was so much more intense than she had expected which was why she was constantly reminding herself that this was just business.

But after reminding herself of that, a sneaky little thought always seemed to follow.

_'It may be business but that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy herself, right?'_

Serena was starting to realise that she wasn't as professionally minded in all of this as she wanted to be. As she _should_ be.

At least _one thing_ was going as she'd assumed it would. Her _bodyguards_ had not failed to notice the way she had started to dress with just a little bit more care to her appearance, or her glances at him or the shy smiles she threw his way every time their eyes met. As a result they watched her more carefully when she was in the coffee shop than they had before, although it hadn't escalated to them actually following her inside just yet but Serena suspected that it wouldn't be long.

It was the eighth morning that the agent took matters into his own hands. Apparently he'd decided that they'd played this part of the con long enough.

Serena was still trying to get her panting breathing back to normal when she reached the store front of _Luna's Coffee Shop_. She had pushed herself hard today in an almost desperate attempt to rid the FBI agent from her thoughts, even if only for the half an hour or so while she ran, but nothing seemed to work. No matter what, no matter how hard Serena tried, she couldn't keep her thoughts from wondering back to _him_.

Serena had no idea why – or if she did she was very good at keeping it from herself.

Yes, Serena had expected to think about whatever agent the FBI assigned – a little – but she had in no way anticipated that she'd think of him in a context other than the Plan. She should be thinking about getting him into her father's seedy world not what his lips would feel and taste like when he kissed her and how his hands strong hands with long fingers would feel like as they caressed her bare flesh . . .

Which lead to the real reason why she had pushed herself so hard today? Serena was almost desperate to find some relief for this frustration . . .

. . . this sexual tension that was starting to make her fantasise . . .

Oh sweet heaven! Serena inwardly groaned. Evidentially, she hadn't run far enough or pushed herself fast enough.

Serena, distracted by her mind's frustrating refusal to stop thinking about _him_, didn't realise that someone was exiting the coffee shop at the same time that she stepped inside until she walked straight into someone tall who's chest was so firm that she most likely would've done less damage to herself had she walked into a brick wall.

Serena was aware of two things at once. The first was that she had rebounded off of someone who was solid enough that they'd barely been jolted by the impact and second was that whoever he was he had been holding a cup of something with ice in it.

Serena knew this because the ice-cold milky-amber liquid had spilt all down her front with a startling effect as it made contact with her heated and flushed skin.

With a startled squeal as she fell backward down through the air, all Serena could do was throw out her arms behind her and brace for her hard – and no doubt painful – impact with the tiled floor.

That never came.

Instead, so fast that Serena did not even see it happen, a long arm shot out and wrapped itself around her midsection, catching her entire weight in mid-air, seemingly without any difficulty what-so-ever.

Automatically, Serena reached out and grasped hold of green fabric to further steady herself.

Serena sighed half-heartedly, reluctant to look up into the face of her rescuer who held her, fearing that she'd die from embarrassment if she did. Honestly, Serena had thought that she'd grown out of the klutziness she'd been plagued with for most of her life, but apparently that wasn't the case.

"Are you alright?"

Serena gasped, the familiar voice making her snap her gaze upward to the face of her rescuer and her eyes grew wide as she realised just who it was that had his arm wrapped around her holding her securely against his hard firm body from breast to kneecap.

An arm that was made up of steely muscle beneath smooth tanned flesh that held her so securely that she could've stayed like exactly where she was forever.

His eyes. . . Oh god, his eyes.

The midnight blue bedroom eyes of her FBI agent.

Hang on, when had he become _her_ FBI Agent?

_'Who cared?'_ Whispered a purring voice inside her head that was very pleased to be pressed so intimately against the body that she'd had so much difficulty trying not to think about for the last week.

Serena opened her mouth to answer him but to her mortification nothing came out. She was speechless. More than that, she was so enraptured by the feel of him against her that she was beyond rational thought, let alone the ability to order her limbs into motion.

Suddenly, despite the ice drink that soaked the front of her shirt, Serena felt very very _very_ hot. Hotter than she could ever remembering being in her whole entire life. Hot enough that she could've spontaneously combusted, not that she would've cared even if she did, not as long as he continued to hold her like he was as he stared down into her eyes with his captivating eyes.

Unfortunately though, _he_ seemed to have no mental impairments and with a surprising gentleness, he stepped back and set her on her feet while keeping her in the circle of his arms without touching her, obviously checking to see if she was steady enough on her feet that there was no risk of her falling over.

Feeling the solid floor beneath her feet was enough to bring her out of it enough that Serena was able to force her mind to start functioning once again. This wasn't spring break in which she was free to let her libido have its way; it was a serious situation in which both of their lives were at risk.

Serena really had to pull herself together. It didn't matter that he was the most stunning specimen of manliness that Serena had ever laid eyes upon, or that he had eyes like an endless starry sky after a storm or a voice that was sweeter than honey.

All this was for one single purpose and one only – to bring down some very bad men.

Serena HAD to get her head in the game. Everything depended on her performance here and now, if she messed it up then there would never be a second chance and she would lose everything.

Not that she had that much more left to lose, but still.

"Are you alright?" He repeated, looking and sounding concerned now.

Serena drew in a deep breath and focused on getting back on track; she had a part to play, that was all this was.

An act that was a means to an end – either her fathers or her own.

"I'm fine." Oh good god, she sounded so breathless and dazed that her shaky voice completely contradicted her words!

_'Get a grip, Serena!' _Serena silently scolded herself._ 'The last thing you need is him thinking you're mentally incompetent and calling the whole operation off!'_

"I'm fine." Serena repeated more steadily and she took a small step back from him, out of the circle of his arms, hoping that distance from him would help her collect herself.

Still visibly concerned and now doubtful, he still kept his arms extended on either side of her, still ready to catch her if she fell.

"I just knocked the wind out of myself," Serena lied as she straightened her shirt, which promptly reminded her that it was still wet.

Serena looked down at her shirt at the wet fabric that was sticking uncomfortably to her skin. Fortunately, even though her thin cotton shirt was now see through, Serena had been spared any further embarrassment thanks to her light grey sports bra that even when wet was _not_ see through.

The scent of milky coffee filled her nose enabling Serena to identify the drink she was now wearing. "It looks like I owe you an iced coffee." Raising her gaze Serena indicated at him with a brief laugh. "At least I spared _you_ from the worst of it."

He looked down at the damp patch on his black polo T-shirt beneath his green jacket – that he seemed to favour at he wore it most days – as if he were only just now realising that she wasn't the only one who'd gotten hit by the spilt drink.

He then looked up at her, his amusement making his eyes twinkle. "I think this is the first time _I've_ ever dumped _my_ drink on a woman and had _her_ _owe me_ a drink." He indicated at her shirt. "I think the top I owe you is more necessary than my drink."

"It's only milk and coffee. It'll come right out." Serena waved her hand dismissively, finally realising the situation for what it was: an opportunity to finally take things between them to the next level.

"Are you sure?" His tone made it seem as if he were actually surprised that she wasn't stressing about the staining to her clothes.

Serena smiled reassuring at him. "I'm sure. You'd be surprised what washing it will do to bring the coffee out and even if it is horribly stained for life, I have plenty more shirts just like this one." Her tone was playful, bantering. "I think I can survive the loss of one."

He smiled broadly at her, visibly amused by her playful candour. "At least let me buy you your brunch." He indicated at the counter with is hand. "What would you like?"

"Oh, you don't have too." Serena told him in that way that people did when they meant and expected the exact opposite of what they are saying. Finally she was able to get herself back on script.

He held up his hand in a halting motion. "I insist. What will it be? Anything you want, anything at all. Order one of everything if you want to."

Serena smiled as she felt heat flood her cheeks and neck, and she quickly ducked her head so he wouldn't see. There was no way she was going to be able to eat anything in his company but food would be a perfect excuse to prolong her time with him. "Um, a chocolate chip muffin and a glass of milk please."

He had already turned away from her to place their order when a silent mortified gasp escaped her lips. Had she really just asked for a glass of milk?! What was she, four years old?! She had asked for it without thinking as it was what her mother had provided whenever Serena had been upset and was in need of comfort or when her mother had wanted to have a nice long talk with her. It had been their thing, from the earliest Serena could remember to her mother's dying day.

A glass of milk, especially with something sweet and chocolatey, meant more to Serena that just a snack or an indulgence of her sweet tooth. It was her go-to comfort food.

That was probably it. Her brain was still suffering the effects of her _close encounter_ with her FBI agent and had gone with the first thing that had come to mind.

Shaking her head, Serena turned and took a seat at his table, sitting opposite his usual spot.

For once, Serena gave no thought to anybody who might be watching her or her Plan, instead she used the brief amount of time alone to pull herself together and remind herself what was really happening here. If her head wasn't firmly in the game then she was a risk to everything, to all her plans. She had to remember what was at stake and keep herself from letting what had just happened happen again.

She couldn't lose her focus again, not even for a moment. She was going to have to be vigilant and watch her step – and her mouth.

A tall full glass of white creamy milk and a plate laden with a large chocolate choc-chip muffin and half a dozen chocolate chip cookies appeared on the table in front of her with a friendly "Here you go."

Serena looked up as the – not _her_! _–_ FBI Agent slid smoothly into his seat across the small table from her, placing a large mug that was more wide than it was high on the table in front of him.

He grinned at her, a teasing playful twinkle in his gorgeous eyes. He pointed down at his own drink on the table in front of him. "Now this one is _hot_, so if you're going to spill anything I'd go with your milk."

Serena couldn't help but laugh. A real laugh that she didn't have to fake.

Why was it so easy to be with this stranger who's only interest in her was professional?

And now that she had had a chance to think, Serena had to wondered whether or not this whole incident had been an accident that they were both taking advantage of or had he orchestrated it to move things along? She wanted to ask him but knew better than to risk it as she could never know just who was listening.

Looking for something to say, anything, Serena looked down and really noticed her plate before she looked back up at him. "Just who is all this for? If I eat all this it'll take me a week to come down off the sugar high."

He chuckled softly. "_Some_ of it is for me."

"Really?" Serena raised an enquiring eyebrow. "You think I'm going to share my muffin with you?"

His grin was downright charmingly flirtatious. "Only because I'm going to share my cookies with you."

"Wow, just like kindergarten." Serena replied with just the tiniest hint of sarcasm. She pushed the plate into the middle of the table between the two of them and using her fingers pinched the moist gooey chocolate muffin in half.

Of course her fingers came away covered in smeared chocolate and cake crumbs but instead of reaching for he napkin, Serena stuck her fingers into her mouth one at a time to lick and suck her fingers clean. She had never been one to waste _any_ chocolate.

And in a way, the sweetness of the chocolate and the saltiness of her skin was really tantalizsing.

Serena pulled the last of her fingers from her mouth and looked up to see the Agent's eyes fixed on her mouth with an odd startled and captivated look on his handsome face.

"What?" Serena asked, utterly confounded at his bug-eyed expression.

He swallowed. Once. Twice. Then he looked up into her eyes, his expression frozen in place. He looked startled and hungry all at the same time.

Serena watched him for a long moment, baffled at his reaction. What had she done that had him so flabbergasted? If Serena hadn't known better she would've sworn that he was in pain.

But then, in the blink of an eye, his baffling expression was gone and he shifted in his seat before he lowered his gaze from her and cleared his throat.

"So," He said as he cleared his throat for a second time like someone who'd just had a coughing fit – he sounded as if he'd he had too. "Are we going to dig in or what?"

Darien quickly reached for a cookie and bit into it just for something to do, something to take his mind away from the image of the golden beauty on the other side of the table licking chocolate off her fingers with all the vigorous delight of a kitten lapping up its first saucer of cream.

He'd been unable to do anything other than stare at her as she'd sucked on each of her chocolate smeared fingers in turn, even running her tongue back and forth – he could tell by the movement of her cheeks – determined to get it all.

Darien was known for his self-control, it was another thing about him that made him so very good at his job, but he was still human damn it! He was still a man, and nothing had been able to stop the image of Serena sucking on _him_ that enthusiastically from entering his mind. And in response to the erotic image – both before his eyes and in his mind – his body had responded.

Painfully.

He had grabbed the cookie like it was a lifeline, and now as he chewed – it might as well have been made of sawdust for all that he could taste of it – one thought kept rolling over and over in his mind.

Had she done that on purpose or was she _that_ innocent that she hadn't known what watching her had done to him?!

And if she had done that on purpose, had she only done it for the purpose of their sham relationship?Or had she done it on purpose to lure him in because she was playing him?

_Who_ was this woman?! And was her manner all an act for the assignment or was she really the sheltered and inexperienced young woman in serious trouble that she seemed to be?

* * *

><p><strong>23 Hours and 35 minutes later . . . <strong>

Serena knew he would be there even though they hadn't actually made any plans, but still all morning she'd had this feeling of excited anticipation churning her stomach as if she'd eaten a dozen ice butterflies for breakfast. Time felt as if it was moving in slow motion just to torment her.

Serena had had this dreadful doubt ever since she'd left the coffee shop the morning before. Doubt that had plagued her all night and kept her from sleeping until the wee hours of the morning, the same questions rolling around her mind, tormenting her over and over again.

What if he wasn't there? What if, after their conversation – if you could call it that – he had come to the conclusion that she wasn't worth the bother? What if her father had warned him away already? Or done worse?

But he had been there. A wave of relief had swept through her when she'd finally stepped into the coffee shop after only a fifteen minute run – solely for appearances – her eyes instantly drawn to one table to see him sitting there waiting for her.

In that moment Serena had felt like idiot for pointlessly worrying all night long.

On the table sat two of the store's coffee mugs and a single plate that held two oversized muffins – they looked like blueberry – and four chocolate chip cookies.

Serena beamed at him as she took her seat across from him, the smell of hot chocolate filling her nose from the mug on her side of the table.

Serena made a mental note to at some point later in the day take some time to really exercise, especially if they were going to eat like this every day.

It was almost strange. He seemed to know her preferences although she hadn't mentioned any of them other than her request the day before.

"You're earlier than usual." Darien observed.

Serena smiled shyly at him. "And yet you still had my order ready for me. What would you have done if I'd been late? Would you have ordered me another drink or left it for me to drink cold?"

Darien smiled back, enjoying their playful banter. "I've been ordering you a fresh one every fifteen minutes for the last three quarters of an hour."

Serena's mouth dropped open. "You have not!"

Darien chuckled. "No, I didn't." He indicated his head towards the park across the street that surrounded two sides of the dry cleaners. "I saw you finish up and ordered. With how early you are you must've either started earlier or you didn't put much into it today."

Serena lifted her drink to her lips and carefully sipped. She almost purred as the sweet creamy hot chocolate that was just the right flavour filled her taste buds. Her drink was the perfect temperature, not too hot and not too cold; he must've ordered it just before she'd finished her run – exactly when he said he had.

"Were you watching me?" Serena asked with no accusation in her voice.

Darien shook his head. "More like I was out watching _for_ you."

Serena accepted that. In fact she was impressed with his answer. If he had been watching her he would've appeared overeager – not to mention a little bit creepy as watching her would've fallen on the stalker side of the line – while he'd been keen enough to keep an eye out for her.

What was Darien in real life that made him such a dating expert? Serena felt like she was being wooed expertly by a master while not feeling defensive at all.

Deciding to change the subject because she didn't want her thoughts running any further down that path, Serena looked over her drink at him and asked with feminine coyness, "So what do you do before coming here? You know my thing; I run the park across the street. What brings you here because I know it's not the atmosphere."

Darien plastered a mocking affronted expression on his handsome face. "And how do you know I don't enjoy this atmosphere? For all you know I cross half the city just to enjoy this atmosphere."

Serena snorted skeptically. "Really? You came half way across the city for a small coffee shop that offers half of the normal menu than most and plays only chick music from the last three decades? Or is it the puffy fancy deep pink décor that you enjoy so much?" She indicated her head at the next table which did indeed have pink leather seat cushions on the chairs and pink sugar holders sitting atop pink plastic table clothes on the table.

"There are only two kind of guys I have ever seen in here, expect for the first timers of course," Serena went on, her tone provocative. "And they're either with their steady girlfriend or wife, or they're with their _'significant other'_."

Darien, with narrowed eyes, thought about that one for a long moment, trying to decipher the true meaning to her words. "Are you asking me if I'm gay?"

Serena shrugged, enjoying the playful teasing conversation. "Hey, all I'm doing is adding up the evidence, you know two plus two equals four."

"What evidence?"

Serena nearly lost it at the look on his face. He looked so baffled. He was so adorable! It was hilarious!

"Well, apart from your coffee shop choice, there are certain elements of your behaviour that I have observed." Serena took another sip of her drink, taking her time about it just to torment him by drawing her reply out.

"And?" He persisted impatiently.

Serena bit down on the inside of her bottom lip as she fought harder to keep her laughter from slipping out.

It took her a minute.

"And, for one example, there was that book you were reading that first day I met you."

"_'The Red, White and Blue'_? Just what is it about reading war stories that makes me appear gay?" Darien enquired, honestly lost on that one.

"Oh, please!" Serena exclaimed skeptically. "It wasn't the book! How many men do you know would come into a place filled with women to read and not pay attention to a single one of them because the book was _that_ good?"

"It was a great read!" Darien defended, raising his voice just enough to draw the attention of the immediate surrounding tables. "Now if it had been a book about interior design by one of the cast from _'Queer eye for the straight guy'_ then maybe you would have something, but _war stories from America's history? _Really?"

"You could've been reading a _Marvel_ comic and I'd still be making this point." Serena argued. "It was _how_ you were reading that I'm referring too. I mean, what _straight_ single man would be more interested in a book about war stories than all the available women in the room giving you the eye?"

"I noticed you."

"Uh-huh." Serena did not believe him, FBI agent or not.

"You need to learn that appearances can be deceiving." Darien folded his arms on the table in front of him and leaned forward. He lowered his voice so only she could hear him. "I might have had my head down but I noticed you the moment you walked through the door."

"Sure you did." Serena said skeptically.

"You may have brought a tall mocha with skim milk and raw sugar and a chocolate croissant, but you were considering the vanilla slice before you decided on the croissant." One corner of his mouth quirked up into a half smile. "I guess with you chocolate will always win in the end, huh?"

This time Serena's jaw dropped because of her genuine astonishment. She _had_ been considering the vanilla slice before she had decided on the chocolate croissant! Just how closely had he been watching her while fooling everyone in the coffee shop into believing that he'd been deeply engrossed in his book?!

Could all FBI agents do that or was it just Darien that could deceive so easily?

Darien smirked smugly. "Like I said, Serena. Appearances can be _very_ deceiving."

Serena couldn't help but wonder just how deceived she'd already been by him. He was an FBI Agent on an undercover mission; was anything about him real?

"Except with you." He said softly.

Serena blinked, completely lost. What did he mean?

"I find it hard to believe that you are anything than what you appear to be."

Serena shifted uncomfortably under Darien's intense gaze. He was staring at her like he was trying to figure something out, only he didn't know exactly what it was that he was trying to figure out.

But before Serena could reply to his cryptic comment, his expression shifted back to one of amusement and he lowered his gaze from her eyes to the table. He picked up his mug and carefully took a sip before returning the mug to the table in front of him.

Serena noticed that he didn't swallow right away; he seemed to be savouring the taste for a moment first.

"I already know about that little habit of yours," Darien nodded his head, indicating at her hair. "When you're thinking about something that makes you sad, you pull your hair over your shoulder and run your hands down it, stroking it like one would a cat."

Serena blinked as she self-consciously touched her hair but intentionally did not pull it over her shoulder. She did that?

Did she?

Serena thought back to the last time she could remember that she'd done that and realised that she had been sad at the time. It had been only a few days ago and she'd been thinking about her mother and how much she missed her.

Huh. When had she done that _here_ though? Serena couldn't recall ever doing so – but that didn't mean that she hadn't.

"It was the very first time I laid eyes on you." Darien told her, his tone gentle and his eyes soft. "_Before_ you commented on my _gay_ book." He nodded his head to the side, out the window. "You were across the street, you'd just finished running and were drinking from that ridiculous pink canteen of yours. You'd just put it back on your belt when something in the park caught your attention. Even from here I could see the sadness on your face and that was when you pulled your plait over your shoulder and ran your hands down it as if you were soothing a small child." He looked deeper into her eyes, hiding nothing of his compassion and understanding in his own. "But you were soothing yourself, weren't you?"

Darien cleared his throat and looked down at the plate between them. He picked up a cookie and without looking up at her, he broke it in half as if he'd just realised that he'd revealed too much and was trying to downplay it.

"And I couldn't help but wonder what had made you so sad," Darien went on. "It wasn't until later that day, after you'd asked about my book, that I realised what it was."

Darien finally looked back up into her eyes and Serena silently gasped at the nakedness there, the raw emotion that wrapped itself around her heart in such a way that it somehow bound them.

"Loss." Darien stated with all certainty. "I lost my parents when I was seven years old. I can barely remember them, but I know the pain loss leaves behind, the empty void. I spent years seeing it in the mirror."

Serena realised that her eyes were filling with tears and she blinked, trying to make them ago away before she began crying in the middle of a public place with her _bodyguards_ watching. The last thing either of them needed was the four goons thinking that they needed to intercede because Darien was doing something she didn't like.

But the tears wouldn't go away. And neither would the agony that had risen in her chest. It was always there, just as Darien had said, the loss of those she had loved and lost in the past two years – her mother and her friends. Most days now Serena could remember them without crying, but this was different.

Darien _understood_. Serena could see the same pain in his eyes and she _knew_ that he was sharing something true about himself.

Unaware of what she was doing, Serena reached over her shoulder and pulled her hair over her shoulder. It wasn't in a plait today – plaiting it would've taken too long and she'd been too impatient to get to the coffee shop – instead it was in a high pony tail.

At seeing what she was doing and what it meant, Darien reached out and closed his hand over hers. "I'm sorry," He whispered emotionally, honestly. "I didn't mean to make that radiant smile of yours disappear."

Serena swallowed and gave him a shaky smile. "It's okay." She laid her other hand over his so that his big strong warm hand was nestled between both of hers on her shoulder where her hair now lay. "It's nice to have someone in my life that understands. I haven't had that in a long time."

Darien flexed his fingers just enough to gently squeeze her hand. "Well, you do now."

In the face of such empathy in his eyes, Serena could do nothing but bow her head and close her eyes. How easily she'd forgotten that this man was a stranger to her – this was their second sham '_date_' after all – and on top of that he was an FBI agent who was only using her to bring down her father in return from her freedom from the prison her life had become.

That was the deal. Serena had given the FBI a chance to take down her father and in return they would send her far away from her father in the Witness Protection Program.

One way or another, after all this was over, Serena would never see Darien again.

Darien was an FBI agent who was only doing his job. He was not here to be her friend, or anything else along those lines.

Serena had to stop forgetting that none of this was real. His only interest in her was professional. He did not care about her; he couldn't let himself even if he wanted too.

So why had he looked at her with such caring in his eyes? Was he _that_ good at his job? Was he that great an undercover agent that he had become the world's best actor?

Serena leaned back in her chair, out of Darien's reach and reached for her drink. They had to get this show back on script. Her _bodyguards_ needed to believe that she was smitten about this man and getting all sad and weepy was counteractive to that goal.

Forcing a small smile onto her lips that Serena knew looked more than a little forced, she lifted her chin and asked the first inconsequential question thing that came to mind.

"So Darien, where did you go to school?"

* * *

><p>As the weeks passed they grew closer and closer even though all they had was their daily morning interludes at the coffee shop.<p>

Serena found herself looking forward to their morning meetings more than she ever had her runs. In fact, from that first brunch, Serena had been running less and less so she could spend more and more time with Darien – but no matter how many more minutes Serena managed to find for their morning interludes, their time together always ended far too soon for her liking.

They talked and laughed and flirted over their drinks and with each interlude Serena had to fake her complete absorption by him less and less until the whole thing had come to feel real, too real, until it had become almost impossible to remember that _none_ of it_ was real_. Although they never broke character Serena knew without being told that most of the stories he told her weren't true, even though once in a while Serena would get the feeling what the boyhood adventure he was describing did have some element of truth to it.

By the end of the second week, neither of them could sit for very long without touching each other. They held hands, caressed each other's face or arm or shoulder at any and every opportunity.

Serena couldn't help herself and if Darien felt even half of what she felt, then Serena couldn't blame Darien for being unable to keep from touching her either. Whenever Darien touched her, he always left a glorious tingling in his wake that seemed to shot right down into her lower belly, and when Darien touched her, no matter how casual the contact, Serena felt a bolt of pleasurable excitement zing through her entire body and it filled her stomach with butterflies until it was all she could do just to take an occasional sip of her drink.

With each touch Serena only wanted more.

Everything else between them may have been a lie, but not the sexual tension that sparkled and sizzled between them. Serena knew Darien felt it, just maybe as strongly as she did, and she didn't know how much longer she could keep it contained no matter how many flimsy excuses she struggled to come up with.

Darien filled her dreams with what she could not – would not – let happen in the real world; she couldn't risk it, not in her current situation.

Serena would die before she gave her father what he so obsessively wanted.

But at the same time Serena didn't know how much longer she could stand it. Her dreams were more than dreams, they we verging on wild sexual fantasies. Her dreams made her burn with desire until it became so intense, so overwhelming and hot and overcoming that it would wake her. She would wake covered in sweat, panting heavily, her body straining for that last bit of pleasure that would push her over the edge.

But when Serena did wake it was too an empty bed and she was left feeling sexually frustrated to the point of madness and unfulfilled.

Worse than that, when Serena woke after feeling such a strong burning connection with him, Serena felt more alone than she had ever felt.

But it wasn't just when she was sleeping that Darien plagued her mind. When Serena was awake, he consumed her thoughts until she was with him again and then she was completely focused on him.

When it came time for her to leave – and Serena knew she had to leave or she'd be late and that was one red flag her father would definitely notice – it felt like she was leaving a part of herself behind with him and it was becoming increasingly difficult, and strangely painful.

But what was also increasing was her fear, her _conflicting_ _fears_. Serena feared that if she continued to become so wrapped up in Darien and the way he made her feel, she would get sloppy and slip up, which brought her to her deepest fear that she would get Darien hurt or worse, killed.

What hadn't occurred to her until Serena had realised that she was coming to care for Darien – something she hadn't seen coming at all – was that her father might use him in another way to get what he wanted from her; instead of bringing Darien into the fold as was her Plan, her father could threaten him unless she gave in.

What then? Could she really risk Darien's life like that? She absolutely refused to give her father what he wanted; she couldn't! But at the same time she couldn't let something happen to Darien either!

What was she going to do? Was it too late to call this off? If she did then she'd be trapped by her father and she'd most likely never see Darien again.

But wasn't that a better trade off than never seeing him again because he'd been killed?

Serena couldn't believe she'd been such a fool! How could she have failed to consider this possibility that she might just fall for the FBI Agent? Maybe if she had, she could've steeled herself against it and prevented it from happening in the first place!

But she hadn't, so what was she going to do?

And on top of all that, why hadn't something changed or someone intervened by now? Her _bodyguards_ must have reported this to her father by now as they had observed her every interaction with Darien through the window each morning.

So why hadn't her father reacted or intervened?

Serena had no answers. All she did know was that she couldn't stop seeing Darien. Her entire existence had become all about her daily all-too-brief time with Darien.

And even though Serena knew that almost everything she knew about Darien was part of his cover story – meaning false – there were things about him that Serena _knew_ were real, things that were not part of his cover story.

Darien had this gentle kindness that ran bone deep, the kind that made him protective of every innocent, of everyone who was weaker than he was. That was what he was at his core, a _protector_. To Darien his job was more to him than bringing criminals to justice just because someone had to do it; it was about bringing criminals to justice because of the damage and hurt they caused others.

And despite their sham relationship and the cover story they had to maintain, Darien was _honest_. He didn't even sugar-coat the little things but he was never mean or rude or did anything to hurt her feelings. He gave his honest opinions about things with sincerity rather than use what most people considered "polite little white lies".

When Serena asked him what he thought about something – even something about herself or her appearance – Darien always answered honestly – and never with one word answers either.

Somehow they had ended up talking about her hair – again – and why she kept it so long – because she liked it long and her mother had _loved_ it long – and she'd hold told him that, but a moment of self-consciousness made her add something about how it limited what she could do with her hair and how plain she must look only ever wearing it in one of four styles – a plait, a ponytail, half up and of course down.

Instead of simply stating that she looked _nice_ no matter how her hair was, Darien had looked straight into her eyes and said with complete honesty that he loved her hair because it was unique like her. He loved that when she had it plaited she looked regal, while in a ponytail he loved the way her hair flowed down her back like a ray of pure sunlight and he liked it down best of all because it was like a waterfall of liquid gold.

By the end of _that _compliment, Serena had been reduced to a pile of warm mushy affectionate goo, as she had been completely and utterly floored by how shamelessly he had flattered her while meaning every word of it.

In fact, Serena was afraid that she'd fallen a little more in love with him in that moment, but what really terrified her was that she might've fallen more than _a little_ in love with him.

The proof of that, more than anything else, lay in the changes in her thoughts; she had even started considering calling her Plan off. Not because she was having second thoughts about its likelihood of success but because the thought of something happening to Darien made her so nauseous that it is all she can do to keep any food in her stomach.

"Serena?"

A soft voice pierced her thoughts and Serena looked up from her mocha on the table in front of her to see a concerned expression on Darien's face.

"Is everything alright?" He asked, nodding his head at her shoulder.

Serena looked down and realised what he was looking at. She was running her hands down along her plaited hair like she was patting a sleeping puppy.

Serena had no memory of pulling her hair over her shoulder.

It was scary how attentive this man was; he already knew her so well after so brief a time together.

Serena stilled her hands, flicked her hair over her shoulder and pushed her troubled thoughts away. She'd obviously been out of it for a while and now she needed to get her head back on track. She had the rest of the day and all night to worry about these things.

Serena didn't want to waste a moment more of her time with Darien lost in her conflicting thoughts; their daily hour together seemed to get shorter and shorter each time they met even though in reality it was gradually becoming just that little bit longer

Darien reached out and caught hold of her hand in his, bringing their joined hands to the middle of the table between them.

"Are you alright?" Darien asked her in a hushed bur a caring tone that spoke volumes.

Darien wasn't asking her if she was alright because he was playing a part, the FBI agent was asking if she was still okay in her Plan.

The man was downright spooky in the way he seemed to always know what she was thinking.

Serena turned her hand so that she was holding his hand the same way he was holding hers and she gave him a soft smile that was more than a little regretful.

"Sometimes the most likely outcomes of what we plan don't become apparent until it's too late." Serena muttered under her breath so he could only just hear her. "Like the consequences for the other players in the game."

"You mean your father?" Darien asked just as quietly.

"No," Serena tightened her hold on his hand ever-so-slightly, wordlessly communicating her concern for him. "I mean you."

Darien leaned forward until only a few inches separated them.

Oh, god. Was he going to kiss her? Was she going to finally learn his taste? She knew his touch, which replayed in her dreams at night – in ways that were in no way suitable for public places – but her ignorance of his taste tormented her relentlessly as her imagination struggled to fill the gap in her knowledge.

But he came no further, instead Darien stared long and hard into her eyes, searching – for what Serena had no idea.

Maybe he was searching for signs of doubt that could cause her to back out on her deal with the FBI.

"You don't need to worry about me," He whispered so softly that his words were scarcely more than a breath. "I am not here blind, and besides, this was _my_ choice."

Darien raised his free hand to her face and with the gentlest of touches he caressed the side of her face with his fingertips, from her forehead down to her chin. "Besides, I wouldn't pull out now even if ordered too. I couldn't leave you in this alone. Day after day you come here and I see how much you suffer, how much you continue to endure. And knowing what will eventually happen to you, what kind of man would I be if I didn't help you in every way I could?"

Serena gave him a rueful smile. She wanted to look away from his captivating and penetrating eyes but she couldn't, not while he held a resolute promise within them that he would never leave her.

"A smart one," she whispered.

Darien chuckled softly in that charming way of his. "But not a good one. I would rather be a good man than a smart one."

"What is this?" Serena asked him suddenly in all seriousness after a moment, searching his eyes as he continued to search hers. She couldn't stand leaving her most stressful question unspoken for a moment longer. "What is happening here? It doesn't make sense. We haven't known each other that long. Is it all circumstance or is there something else here? Something _real_?"

Darien leaned closer until he was all but up out of his chair. He brought his lips to her ear and whispered, "We'll find out after this is all over."

And then Darien sat back down on his seat and leaned back, pulling away from her. All except for his hand that did not release its hold on hers.

Serena looked down where her hand remained cradled in his, her eyes focused in on his thumb that was gently stroking the back of her hand, back and forth.

Offering comfort and reassurance.

Serena looked up into his eyes and saw a sparkle there that she hadn't noticed before. A sparkle that hinted at things Serena could not yet name.

How was this possible? How had things changed between them so much after knowing each other such a short time under such impossible circumstances? _When_ had things changed between them, becoming something more, something stronger and more binding?

Serena did not understand what she was feeling. She felt so much fear and anger and pain and loss, but at the same time she felt _something_ for him, something that felt so . . . so . . .

Permanent. Something that was permanently binding them. They had a connection, _something_ that pulled them together, like gravity or the sun's orbital pull. It was strong and undeniable. That was one good thing about Serena's situation; she was not going to waste time denying what she felt even if she could never act on it.

Serena was not going to use the L word, not yet, not until her Plan had reached its end – one way or another – but sometime in the past few weeks somehow Darien had become the centre of her life. She lived her life for this one hour of her day.

And Serena didn't know how much longer she could stand having just one hour a day with him when forever felt like it wouldn't be enough.

* * *

><p>Darien watched once again with a heavy heart as Serena walked away from him, out of the coffee shop and with one quick glance back at him over her shoulder as she always did she slid into the back of that damned black SUV with tinted windows and drove back to the mansion that was her polished prison.<p>

Weeks ago Darien had noticed their one hour together a day was just like the one hour of yard time prisoners on death row had every day.

But unlike those convicts, Serena had never done anything wrong to anyone; she was undeserving of her confinement. The only crime Serena had committed it seemed was being born her father's daughter.

How could a man as evil and as cruel as Kenneth Cedrone – the man who had been one of the three men who had murdered his parents – possibly have anything genetically in common with a woman as pure and compassionate as Serena?

At first, before meeting her, Darien had been sickened at the very thought of being near the daughter of the man he hated most in the world, regardless of how attractive he'd found her photo, but at the time he'd been willing to do whatever it took to take down the until-now untouchable Kenneth Cedrone.

But then something unexpected had happened. Darien had begun to fall for her, so much so that he couldn't deny it.

Oh, he could to his superiors – lie that was – but not too himself.

There was something about her that he couldn't resist. Hell, it was everything about her. She was so much more than he ever could've prepared himself for. She was funny and kind and compassionate and selfless and brave and strong.

And on top of all that, the sexual tension between them was so strong that it practically crackled and sparked almost visibly in the air between them. When Serena touched or flicked her hair, he couldn't stop himself imagining it spread across his pillow like liquid gold. When had she licked the foam from her drink from her lips Darien had to clamp down on the impulse to kiss her with all the will he possessed.

And when Serena got that sad long-suffering look in her eyes when her thoughts took her away from him, it was all he could do not to snatch her up, take out her four bodyguards with his concealed weapon that he always had strapped to his ankle and take her far away from her father's evil imprisoning hand.

Serena was someone who needed to be free. No, she needed more than that. Serena, even though she was one of the strongest – inner strength since she was a very petite young woman – women he had ever met, needed to be surrounded by people who loved her in a place of safety and security.

And Darien wanted more than anything to give her just that.

It was nearing three weeks since their first encounter and things between them had become deeper and more intense than they should have, but there was no going back now. No pulling away or leaving her. He just couldn't do it; the very thought of leaving her was enough to sicken him to his very core.

Darien was in this now, until the end. But no matter how this played out, he would keep Serena safe and make sure that she was free of her father once and for all. No matter what he had to do, no matter whom he had to kill.

No matter what it cost him, Serena would be free of her father.

The only thing that Darien wasn't sure he could give up, even for Serena, for anyone, was his chance at revenge, to avenge his parents and maybe finally find some peace himself.

That was what kept him on track. He wasn't going to let anything, not even his own emotions, get his way of taking Kenneth Cedrone down once and for all. He had spent all of his adult life on this one course and he'd sacrificed too much to give it all up now that he finally had his chance.

If the choice came between taking Kenneth Cedrone down and Serena, Darien honestly didn't know which he'd choose or what he would do. He would just have to face that when and if it happened.

Serena was Cedrone's daughter; whatever else the monster did to her Darien was relatively sure that he wouldn't kill her.

And Darien might never get another chance like this again. No one might as Kenneth Cedrone had ways of keeping himself out of the reach of the law so this might be the one and only way of bringing the Mafia King to justice.

Darien couldn't let himself get distracted by a woman who, despite everything, was still a stranger to him.

For all he knew, Serena was the world's best actress and was faking the whole thing. This whole plan of hers could just be a trap – for what he had no idea – but he couldn't let himself trust Serena completely.

She was the daughter of the enemy. _His _enemy.

Besides, regardless of how much Serena claimed she hated her father, how was she going to feel about him if he had to take Kenneth Cedrone out? Kill him even? Was that something Serena could get past, even if she really did have genuine feelings for him? Was she the kind of person who could be with the man who had killed one of her parents, despite what kind of man her father was?

Darien knew that even though Serena had created this plan, she wasn't prepared for every outcome. Had she even considered that when it came time to arrest her father that he might not go quietly? It was not uncommon for people on both sides to lose their lives in operations like this.

Serena was so innocent, so naive in so many things that Darien had to wonder just what kind of life she had lived before her father had abducted her.

And what kind of life she would be able to live after.

* * *

><p>Chapter End Notes:<p>

**All comments and opinions welcome!**


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